


Miser Brothers: Winter Wonderland

by KonaKoa



Category: A Miser Brothers' Christmas (2008), A Year Without a Santa Claus (1974), Rankin-Bass Holiday Specials
Genre: Adventure, Comedy, F/M, Mystery, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2009-12-27
Updated: 2020-12-22
Packaged: 2021-03-10 02:02:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 14
Words: 31,724
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27695978
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KonaKoa/pseuds/KonaKoa
Summary: Snow Miser is having a rough time dealing with the decline in Winter's popularity. Heat Miser on the other hand is soaking up all of the glory. Everyone in the family is trying to get the "Element of the Year" award. That is until Snowy receives a fan letter. Happy that someone still enjoys his snowy powers, Snow Miser visits the girl and finds himself not only befriending her, but falling in love as well. However, it's not allowed for such a relationship! How will this end? Seems like someone is trying to sabotage the elements...
Relationships: Heat Miser/Original Character(s), Snow Miser/Original Character(s)
Comments: 13
Kudos: 18





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is an old fan fiction that I started in 2009! So a lot of the jokes may be outdated. I'll try to go through and revise some of the chapters as much as I can without changing the actual story and plot. I first posted this over on Fanfiction.net ages ago! I had so many requests to finish this over the last 10 years. Yes, it's been 10 years since I've written a chapter for this story! I never ignored any of them, they meant so much to me and kept me going. I just had a major writers block this whole time for this one in particular! I hope that you will all enjoy the new chapters as they come.

There have always been stories about the Miser Brother's who live at the divide. Each one filled up to the brim with their self-loving pride. Neither ever gave the other a glance, without bombarding each other when given the chance! Mother Nature's hands were always quite full, at least she knew things would never be dull. This year however the boys had been good, like they had promised their mother that they would. Sure they bickered and they fought each other. They toned it down however, so they'd impress their mother. You see the Celebration of the Seasons ceremony was coming soon! Every single element was over the moon. In the Celebration of the Seasons they would hold a test, to find out which "Element of the Year" had been at it's best. The Miser Brothers as well as the North Wind wanted this title and wanted to win. So here's where we begin...

The sun was risen high in the sky as Heat Miser happily walked out from his castle. Adjusting his sun glasses he plopped himself down onto his lawn chair. "Aaah... Now to soak up some of those rays...!" Closing his eyes he relaxed his arms just behind his head. Finally he had a moment to rest and just enjoy himself. He had worked so hard making sure those heat waves stayed south the past few days, he'd barely had a moment to even blink. So far this year, as well as the past ten, everyone praised the sunny weather. In fact, Heat's likability had risen. Everyone talked about how they couldn't wait for the warm days, the beautiful flowers to appear and nature to bloom! They couldn't wait to hit the ocean and run through the rain. They wanted anything but snow. Which suited him just fine! Finally he'd gained the appreciation he thought he'd well deserved. His brother Snow Miser on the other hand was faced with all of the complaints.

People complained about their being too much snow, how it was too mushy, too slushy, too slippery, too wet. They complained about how they had to shovel all of it and how the ice caused so many accidents. Everyone was always complaining about the snow now. They always seemed to point out all of the negative things about snow. Not a single person appeared to enjoy it for it's simplicity and how it used to be. Snow Miser sighed as he kicked the pile of complaint letters and turned them to snow. "Hmph..." Frowning he glanced toward his brother. A glimpse of jealousy filled his eyes as he watched him enjoy himself. Now bored Snow Miser leaned against an ice sculpture he'd created. "I see _YOUR_ soaking it all up, again, Brother." Grumpily he folded his arms.

"Haha, You betcha, Blizzard Breath...! Finally it's MY turn in the light!" Grinning widely he just stayed in his reclined position. "10 years of nothing but gratitude! Whatever you're doing brother, keep it up!" Laughing he enjoyed kicking Snow when he was down. Narrowing his eyes, Snow Miser, aimed to throw a snow ball at Heat when a letter gently floated through the air. "Ooh, A Letter...?" Sitting up Heat Miser raised up his shades. Eagerly he awaited to see if it was more fan mail for him, or hate mail for his brother. Sure enough it landed in Snow Miser's hands.

"Great, just what I needed..." Rolling his eyes Snow tossed it toward Heat Miser. "Enjoy yourself, I HATE flamers.." Folding his arms over his chest again he scuffled his feet. Heat Miser laughed and grabbed a hold of the letter. Normally he quite enjoyed just setting all of the letters a blaze! Though this time he decided to actually read it to poke some fun at him.

"Oh, this is gonna be good...! I LOVE flamers...!" He grinned to himself as he excitedly opened the note. Reading it over to himself first his wide smile flopped. Well this had dampened his fun for sure! "Nnngh, I think you're going to _WANT_ this one...! It's _fan_ mail. Unless you'd like me to burn it still...?" Grinning evilly he chuckled to himself.

"F-Fan mail...? WHAT?" Before anyone could even blink Snow Miser formed a little ice bridge to his brother's house. "GIVE ME THAT!" Snatching it from him he quickly read through the letter and what it said.

__

"Dear Snow Miser,

Hi, It's Indigo again..! Well, Indi, for short as of late. I've written you several times before...! You never answered any of my questions... But, that's okay! I guess you were just really busy! Especially bringing all of that snow around. Speaking of which, THANK YOU! Thank you so much for all of the beautiful snow you've brought to Northville! I just love the way it sparkles and shines with the Christmas lights! Oh and in the sun too of course...! Knee-High snow is my favorite, it's great for making snowmen. Are you going to make it snow anymore..? I hope so.. It's beautiful the way it falls from the sky.

I love winter...and I especially love the snow...! Please keep it coming...! I really appreciate all of the hard work you've done. Also, I've always wondered what you look like! Maybe you can send a photo sometime...? If not, that's cool.. HAHA, OOPS! Sorry for the pun! Write ya later...!

Your fan,

  
Indi "

Snow Miser's eyes lit up like a Christmas tree as he'd read the letter. "She LOVES my work! She loves my snow...! FINALLY someone who appreciates the things I do..." Hugging the letter to himself he twirled around on one foot. "A fan. I still have a fan.." A tear streaked from his right eye. "Hmn..." Looking at the letter he nodded to himself. "RIGHT! I'm going down there to meet her! Anyone who's a fan of snow and myself is worth looking into."

"WHAT? You can't go down there!" Heat flailed his arms around. "What if _Mother_ finds out?! She's going to be ticked! You know we're not supposed to mingle with the mortals!" Biting his lower lip Heat Miser worried for not only himself but his brother as well.

"Chill out, _Hot Head!_ Mother will never find out. _Right?_ " Narrowing his eyes at Heat Miser, Snow Miser tapped his foot to the ground.

"AH, well...I uh..." Heat frowned as he gazed to the sky and whimpered. If their mother found out they'd both get an ear full. Since they usually both were accused at the same time. "Fine, but, be EXTRA careful, and don't...!" Just before he finished Snow Miser turned himself into a wave of snow carrying himself down to Northville. " OOHH, POPSICLE BRAIN! YOU'RE GOING TO GET US BOTH IN TROUBLE!" He huffed and stomped on the ground. "He'd better NOT jeopardize MY chances at winning that Element of the Year award...! RRRRH, That boils me!" Clenching his fist he grumbled and growled to himself.

Meanwhile in Northville, Indi had just bundled up. Opening the door to her front yard she gazed around. Everywhere the snow sparkled and twinkled with color almost like sequins. "Yeee, another beautiful day of snow!" Laughing she jumped into the white frozen mess and started to run. Having descended from his home, Snow Miser reformed himself up on a tree branch and watched silently. After all of those years of non stop complaining, it was refreshing to see someone that enjoyed his work. Smiling widely at her antics, he leaned his back against the trunk of the tree. Indi paused in her tracks and sighed happily at the surroundings. The pines were covered in the beautiful white patches, it was almost breath taking. "Well now, what is this scene missing...? I know, a SNOW MAN! Haha and with all of this great snow, it'll be PERFECT for making one...!" Grabbing up some snow she started to roll it around the yard until she'd formed the bottom.

When she finally finished building the snow man, Indi dusted off the snow from her hands. "There we go! All done.." Smiling she turned around to go find some twigs. "AH!" Jumping back out of pure shock she landed butt first in the snow. Standing there in front of her were two Snowmen that looked exactly like herself and Snow Miser. "W-Whaa...?" Gently she poked them studying the one that looked like Snow Miser. Snickering and laughing to himself Snow Miser grinned. It was his own little way of telling her 'Thank You' for the letter. He hoped this informed her that he'd received her letter this time. "Okay, so that one is me.. So who is this..?" Thinking about it a moment it dawned on ehr. "Wait, is that what you look like Snow Miser?!" A wide smile formed on her face, as she thought out loud. "You're rather handsome, Mr. Snow..." Giggling she placed her arms behind her back and looked around to see if he was still around. Snow Miser's eyes widened to her statement as he blushed to the compliment. Tapping at his chin in thought, Snow smugly smiled to himself as he animated the snowman for her.

Startled by the sudden movement Indi covered her mouth. "W-Wait..." It dawned on her a moment, "I-if you're moving..that means...the REAL you is here!" This time she blushed as she cried out. "Oh my gosh, You heard what I said...!" Spinning in the same fashion as Snow Miser usually did, the Snowman-Miser posed and winked. After seeing that her cheeks turned an even deeper red. Squealing out of embarrassment and becoming flustered, Indi raced inside of her house and closed the door. "Too Much!"

"HAHAHAAAA!" Placing a hand on his stomach, the Miser laughed with enjoyment to her reactions. This girl highly amused him. Something he needed after all that time of being rather irritated by his brother getting all of the glory. "She's a fun one.!" Sighing happily he nodded in thought to himself, "Let's see how she handles tomorrow." With that he once again turned to snow, allowing the winds to carry him back home.


	2. Finally Meeting

The next few days he'd continuously stopped by Indi's home. He always appeared at random times and tried to find ways to 'play' little games with her. Today was no different from any of those. He'd finished his daily sweep of snow and was just getting ready to take off. That is, until his brother distracted him. "HOLD IT!" Heat Miser shouted toward his brother as he folded his arms. Snow Miser stopped in his tracks almost immediately. Turning his head he glanced at his brother.

"HMN? Oh. It's Mr. Flaming Cheese Brain! What is it brother...? I'm in a bit of a hurry!" Motioning toward Northville, Snow Miser frowned impatiently.

"Don't tell me you're going to see that mortal again?" Angered by his brother's careless behavior Heat Miser flared up. "This is the 5th time this week! I'm still surprised that neither Mother, nor any of our family have noticed! You're really pushing your luck. Normally I wouldn't give a hoot, but, your cold shoulder to me is NOT going to get in the way of MY winning that Element of the Year award! Have you forgotten, if YOU get in trouble, I get in trouble for not stopping you or telling MOTHER...?" Frowning he pointed to the sky and shuddered at the sheer thought. "I mean, once or twice, suuure! It was amusing at first, now it's just down right ignorant, Freezer Lips!"

"Oh you Spoiled sport, looks like you've been out in the sun for TOO long! Perhaps I should help cool you off...?" Forming a pair of icicles Snow Miser threw them at his brother. Heat Miser gasped as he found himself stuck to the wall.

"Why YOU!" Grunting and growling he glared at his restraints. "You're lucky I'm trying to stay on my best behavior so I can win that award!" Steaming mad Heat Miser grabbed the ice forms melting them into a puddle. By the time he readjusted his attention, Snow Miser had already descended to the world below. "What?! Aughh...BGHGR!~! Fine! Be that way your fruity snow cone! It's not my fault if you get in trouble."

Back in Northville Indi was outside already as she started to get to work on shoveling away some of the snow. "It's such a shame that I have to remove you. Though, if I don't, it'd be my own silly fault if I slipped...!" No sooner had she said that, she actually had slipped. "WAAH! OOOF!" Her eyes widened as she stared at the ice patch beneath her. Well that certainly had turned into a surprise. She knew for a fact that there'd been NO ice there just a moment ago. That could only mean one thing, "Snow Miser!" narrowing her eyes she glared around then laughed. "Don't take it so harshly! It actually pains me to shovel your snow away! It's very pretty, but, I can't walk down to my mail box like this anymore. I've got short legs!" Giggling she thumbed to the sides. "But look at it this way, I'm just making a bigger mountain of snow to the sides...! At least I'm not being so cruel as to melt it..." Sighing gently she treated the snow with much care as she aimed it. Snow Miser watched and laughed at her reactions in amusement. 

"By the way, thanks for that most entertaining show last night...! You're rather good with dance numbers and snowmen." Starting to trudge through the snow to put away the shovel she found herself paused in her footsteps. "WAH!" An icicle had landed right in front of her. "Hrmnn... What is it...?" Walking again she found herself being chased by icicles. Screaming out she darted and dodged the ones that she could. At first it frightened her, having thought she'd done something wrong. However, upon further inspection she noticed he was actually making her 'dance'. With all of the twist, turns, jumps and spins. "Oh, I get it! You're trying to make me dance, but Mr. Snow that's a little dangerous for a human!" Crying out she squeaked as she landed in the snow, having tripped over her own feet. " AH!" Her eyes widened as she stared at an icicle that had landed between her legs near her knees. Slowly the icicle morphed in front of her eyes turning into an ice-flower. "O-Oh..!" Gently she picked it up and stared at the fine detail. "For me...?" Slowly she traced a finger over the petals. "It's gorgeous.." Still watching her, Snow Miser had wanted to give her an apology for not realizing that.

"Where'd you get that...?" A Voice rang from behind her. Both Snow Miser and Indi turned their attention to the boy who had appeared.

"Oh! Zeke, Hey!" Getting to her feet she glanced at the ice flower and smiled warmly. "It was a gift from a friend."

"Oh yeah? Well, I brought ya something to look at too..! Thought you might be into it since you're the snow-nerd around here...!" Smirking Zeke handed her a paper. "Just found out about it today! It's a snow festival. Not many go to it from what I hear and those who do go for the prizes only. Says here you're supposed to make the best snowman, ice sculpture that you can! You can even enter an ice skating contest and the sledding one..."

"THIS IS GREAT!" Indi's expression brightened as she looked at the advertisement. "Oh, we HAVE to enter these! You'll do that with me right...?" Looking hopeful she spun around in place and stopped.

"HAHA, You've GOTTA be kidding me right? I'd never be caught there! Too cold, I hate snow, I hate ice, everything...about it! I like the warm weather with the flowers that have color.." Zeke shuddered and waved his hands accidentally knocking the ice flower from Indi's hand. "Oops...! Oh well... That's that I guess.." Shrugging nervously he rubbed the back of his head.

"AUGH, you jerk, you don't realize how badly the spring needs the sn-...OH NO!" Watching as the flower fell and shattered she quickly covered her mouth. "No..." Softly touching the shattered pieces of ice she picked a piece up into her hand. Slowly her eyes filled with tears as she stared at it.

"Oh please, TELL me you are NOT crying over a stupid piece of ice...! It's not like it would've lasted anyways...it's Ice...WATER...it would've melted over time.." Zeke tried to reason with her. "You are just too obsessed with SNOW...! You've gotta get over it...! There's nothing special about it!"

"No, you don't understand...!" Looking up at him Indi clenched the ice piece in her hand as tears streamed down her face. "A really special friend gave it to me...!"

"So ask him to make another one...! Oy...you're really weird... I'm outta here, see ya late-..EEER! AAAH!" Zeke had found himself on the receiving end of Snow Misers anger. A long slippery patch of ice swiftly carried the boy he found irritating away. For a moment Indi laughed but the frown returned after.

"Thank you, but I don't deserve it. Your beautiful piece of art...it...it's ruined..! I don't care if it's silly to some people, it's still a gift and it was a beautiful piece! Who cares if it would've melted away at some point? I wanted to enjoy it while I had the chance.." Standing up Indi started for the house. "I'm sorry Mr. Snow!" From his spot in the tree Snow Miser just stared in awe at how much she cared about his ice sculpture. Had she really enjoyed his skill that much...? Needless to say he was touched as he made his way near the broken ice sculpture.

"Someone who truly appreciates me, my work, my efforts.. Snow festival hrmn...?" Tapping his chin he pondered if this could be his chance to bring an interest in snow back to the world. With this in mind he turned back into snow, making his way back home. Already he'd started to plot for the next day. When the next morning came, Snow Miser was up bright and early. Happily he twirled on his ice castle as he started to descend down the mountain. When he reached the bottom he collided head on with his brother. "OOOF!" Both brothers grabbed their heads and glared at one another.

"Uh-huh, and just WHERE are you going in such a hurry, Freezer Burn?" Heat Miser demanded as he tapped his fingers on his arm. "You'd better no be off to see that mortal again."

Snow Miser glared at his brother unamused by his horrible name calling pun. "PFFT, Of course not, Blazing Booger! I have more important things to take care of...!" Sticking out his tongue he morphed into his snow and drifted out of sight. Sure he had lied to his brother, but it was better that way! He needed Indi's help to give Snow a good name again! If his brother had found out, of course he would've stopped him! So, he had no choice but to lie.

"Hrmpf, good! As it should be...! Mortals don't appreciate any of our efforts anyways! Their feelings change as quickly as the seasons. Oohh, I'm too hot, Oohh, I'm too cold! Pheh!" Heat Miser grumbled to himself as he turned to go back to his castle. After all he had only started over to his brother's house to check on him. NOT that he cared, at least, he wouldn't admit it.

"Alright, I have to make this PERFECT!" Rolling up his sleeves Snow Miser started to work his magic around Indi's front yard. When he had finally finished he simply tossed some soft snowballs at her window to wake her.

"Ah! W-what was...?" Indi jolted into a sitting position in her bed as she gazed at the window. Watching the snow slide down it she raised an eyebrow. Apparently someone had tried to get her attention and she was pretty sure she knew who it was. "...So early...?" Looking at her clock the time read 9AM. "A little too early..." Yawning she stretched and forced herself up. Once she was dressed she stepped outside and glanced around. "What is it you want me to..." Gasping her eyes widened in amazement. "Oh, WOW!" The snow on the front yard shimmered just right with the help of the sun. It painted the snow a beautiful sunny tone as every speck of it shined. Even more captivating was the bigger surprise that awaited her. The whole front yard was decorated with more ice flowers than she had ever imagined! There were snow sculptures to go along with a few of them as well. " Oh, Wow, These are AMAZING...!"

Looking around she softly touched one of them. "It's like the stuff I've read about in fairy tales.." A warm smile brushed itself upon her face. Happily she admired the beauty of each one. How the sun glistened off the edges of each sculpt.

Appearing behind her Snow Miser placed his hands onto her shoulders. "What can I say? Seeing you cry last night over my simple little sculpt really touched me! You have such a passion for snow, for ice, you understand it. You wrote me such a touching letter.. I.. I couldn't stand to see you so upset yesterday. I thought perhaps, this would make up for that puny little one...?" Laughing he grinned to himself about his work. Indi froze almost immediately to his touch as it first had taken her by surprise. That surprise grew ten fold once she'd heard his voice.

"M-Mr. Snow...?" Quickly Indi's face turned a deep shade of red. By the time she'd looked behind her all she'd seen was a flutter of snow as it floated past her shoulder. "Huh?" Tilting her head she glanced around. Then out of nowhere ragtime music started to play. This caused poor Indi even more confusion as she looked behind her to see Snow Miser standing there and starting to sing.

"I'm Mr. White Christmas! I'm Mr. Snow..." Throwing a handful of snow into the air twirled himself right next to her. Wrapping an arm around her he smiled as his free hand aimed to mid-air. "I'm Mr. Icicle...~! I'm Mr. 10 Below.." Forming ice steps from the sculptures he used them to first walk up then slide back down. "Friends call me Snow Miser, Whatever I touch, Turns to snow in my clutch! I'm too much...!" Re-wrapping his arm around her he laughed as he snagged her scarf into his hand. Quickly he turned it to snow then back to normal again. Indi watching him was highly amused by the performance. Laughing she seemed to get into the spirit of the song. From side to side she rocked very shy and nervous about doing much. Almost out of nowhere Snow Misers "Little Flakes" appeared.

"He's Mr. White Christmas, He's Mr. Snow...!" The little group of minions danced and twirled in a circle around their master. "He's Mr. Icicle, He's Mr. 10 Below...~!" Grabbing her hand Snow Miser lead her as he danced. Slightly he spun himself and her around again and only stopped to sing.

"Friends, call me Snow Miser...! Whatever I touch, Turns to snow in my Clutch...!" Hugging her close again, he winked as he talked about what his friends called him. Reaching out he grabbed the carrot off of a snowman's face turning it into snow and softly blew it at her.

"You're too much!" Indi replied as she giggled to the snow touching her face. True it was cold, but, she liked it. It was snow and she was used to making snow angels and snowmen.

"Thank you...! I never wanna know a day that's over 40 degrees, I'd rather have it 30, 20, 10, 5 and let 'em FREEZE! Brrrrr...brrrr...!" Doing a can-can like sequence with Indi, who desperately tried to keep up, he spun at the end and grabbed his arms. Quickly he rubbed them and made the noise as if he were shivering. Laughing really hard due to the enjoyment, Indi tried to do what he did but only found herself into a fit of laughter. Be it that she was nervous or just too amused!

"He's Mr. White Christmas, He's Mr. Snow! He's Mr. Icicle, He's Mr. 10 Below!" Again the minions popped around the both of them to sing.

"Friends call me Snow Miser, whatever I touch, Turns to Snow in my clutch!" Doing a little ragtime tap dance Snow Miser waved around his cane in his hand, turning it to snow when he was finished.

"He's Too Much!" The Minions shouted as they posed near him.

"Too Much...!" Indi pointed and laughed, holding her gut in pain from all of it. This was the most fun she'd had in a long time. Never had she imagined the Snow Miser to be such a fun loving person. Normally she pictured someone made of ice to be well, cold and bitter! Not really nice at all, but this guy was a joker and appeared to have almost too much fun. "So, finally I get to meet you, Snow Miser..."

Remaking the ice garden Snow Miser smiled at her. "Mmh, After yesterday? I couldn't resist! Say, that guy yesterday said something about a snow festival?" A look of excitement made its way onto his face as he listened.

"O-oh Yeah, Zeke, he gave me that flier! It's for a snow festival here in town. It's coming up really soon. I considered going, but, well, It's filled with people who don't quite appreciate snow. Just the prizes they get from it... Well that and I have no one to go with." Rubbing the back of her head Indi sighed.

"Really? W-well, what if I went with you? It's a festival of snow and it'd give me a chance to try and make people fall in love with snow all over again! Help them see the fun in it." Frowning, Snow Miser grabbed his left arm and rubbed it.

"You mean it...?" Immediately Indi got excited as she jumped up and down in place. "GREAT!! I - Ah!" Slipping in the snow she found herself being caught by Snow Miser. "I know how to make you fit in perfectly with the others!" Realizing the position she was in she blushed and pushed herself off from him. "Th-thanks, I'm so clumsy sometimes...! Hahaha, sounds like a date.. then..!" Smiling warmly she clasped his hand and shook it.

"A d-date...? O-oh, OH Yeah! Yeah, it's a...date!" Snow Miser grinned goofily at her as they shook hands. For some reason he found himself gazing into her blue eyes. The way they shined in the sun almost reminded him of the snow back home. "O-Oh, Well I..uh, I'd better get going. I'll be back soon. I've gotta be at this meeting with Mother and I can't miss that!" Shaking his head he snapped out of it, feeling an odd warm sensation approach his cheeks.

"Mother...?" Raising an eyebrow Indi curiously wondered just who his mother could be.

"Well, of course... Mother Nature silly...!" Poking her on the nose he laughed. "See ya around !" and with that he turned back into snow. Softly he flew around her as he darted toward the sky.


	3. Family Talk

Going back home Snow Miser prepared himself for his Mother's meeting. He hated these sort of things normally, since they were always dragged out. All of his brothers and sisters were going to be there, which meant he had to listen to all of their stories. All of the children liked to brag about how great their element was and how much they deserved more time. Every time though it was the same old thing him and his brother Heat Miser ended up getting into a fight. It never seemed to go over well. When he finished preparing himself for the meeting he glanced at his hair. He glanced away from the mirror and to the floor. Indi had entered his mind as he pondered what kind of hairstyles she'd like. For some reason that he himself couldn't understand, he wanted to make a good impression on her. 

"Maybe, slicked back like this...!" Grinning he looked into the mirror and wiggled his eyebrows. "Haha, perfect! My coolest one yet...!" Turning he started out of his home. The time had come to go to their Mother's.

"What's with the new look, SLICK? Trying to impress MOTHER again...? Well two can play at that game...!" Firing himself up Heat Miser glared at his brother as he himself did his hair slicked back. Snow Miser just laughed as he threw his arms into the air.

"HAH, I don't need to _try_ to impress Mother! I am her favorite remember...?" Sticking out his tongue Snow Miser smiled smugly at Heat Miser.

"YEAH WELL, WAIT'LL SHE GETS A LOAD OF WHAT I'VE DONE!" Heat Miser roared as his temper flared up. "You'll be all washed up when I get through with this meeting!"

"HAH, and you'll be nothing but a chilling memory when I'm through!" Both of them readied themselves to start their warring. In no time they'd started flinging fireballs and ice spears at one another. The two of them had been so focused they'd forgotten all about the meeting. "You're just jealous because you don't have a fan like -I- do...! One who actually really adores everything that I do. "

"PHEH, I've got a WHOLE bag load remember...!" Heat Miser motioned to his castle as he threw another fireball toward his brother. "To all of them, I'm pretty _hot stuff!_ "

"...Yeah, but they're NOTHING like that fan I have!" Laughing he tossed a few snowballs. "She loves all of my work...! She has these blue eyes and long blue-black hair with a variety of blue bangs and even a white one! She even paints her lips blue to match...! That's how much she loves snow!" Having been lost in his thoughts Snow Miser hadn't even realized his brother had thrown another fireball. "W-WAAAH!" Jumping up he grabbed the seat of his pants and darted around screaming.

"I _think_ you should try and stay FOCUSED on more important things! Like the weather, the ceremony and not on some stupid MORTAL girl! You are so distracted by this...'fan' of yours..! If I didn't know any better, I'd say you have some sort of crush on her!" Laughing at the thought Heat Miser slapped his knee until a snowball plowed him in the face.

"HAH, LOOK who's talking you frazzled fritter! A crush...on a human...? HAHA...! That's...unlikely! There's a bigger chance of me letting youuuu take over the North Pole for 3 years..!" And so the fighting ensued again until Mother Nature teleported them both to the meeting. Upon their arrival both paused in mid fire as the entire family stared at them. Both having wanted a chance at winning that Element of the Year award the two dissipated their projectiles.

"Hello, Mother...!" The two of them grinned nervously as they tried to look as innocent as possible.

"Hello boys, have a seat will you...? We were just about to get started with the meeting." Smiling, Mother Nature pointed to the rest of the family. The two boys quickly placed themselves in chairs across from each other. "So, Everyone knows that the Element of the year award will be coming up soon yes?" Looking around the table all of the elements became excited. "As we all know every year we make a different castle out of one element to celebrate in. Last year it was Heat Miser's turn with that VERY impressive molten castle. The year before that was the Tides.." She continued to explain. "This year, It shall be Snow Miser's turn. Snow Miser, would you do us the honor of making the Elemental Castle this year...?"

Gasping in excitement, Snow Miser jumped to his feet happily. "Of course, Mother! I would be honored to build the celebration hall this year...!"Excitedly he looked at Heat Miser. "I promise it'll look 10 times better than my brother's did!" Grinning he laughed and took his seat.

"Y-YES, BUT MOTHER DEAR?" North Wind finally spoke up. The entire time he'd been sitting there he'd already been disgruntled. Of all people he had to be near his brother's Heat Miser and Snow Miser. After what they'd done to ruin his plans to take over Christmas, and then instead they'd gotten all of the glory for all of HIS hard work...? He despised them! He was STILL doing dishes for Mother Nature. His poor fingers constantly turned wrinkly and he barely had time to even adjust his gorgeous features..! He couldn't remember the last time he'd looked in a mirror within the past 2 hours. " If I may interject.." He awaited approval, "Thank you.. Wouldn't it be better if the castle were made out of something not so slippery? Something nice, soft and fluffy perhaps? You do remember that when the Tides made the castle, we had to practically SWIM to get anywhere..!"

Hearing the put downs Snow Miser frowned toward his brother as he placed his hands on his hips. "Yes, but that is the purpose of each element making their own Castle! It's to see how well each of you can think up a design and layout. How well you know your own element. To see if you can get help from one another. You all must learn to rely on one another for help...! " Looking at Snow Miser, Mother Nature smiled warmly. "You keep that in mind dear while you make the castle." Agreeing Snow Miser smiled with relief. North Wind on the other hand grumbled as he took his seat again. He'd hoped his mother would've wanted to choose him to make the castle. That would've allowed him to show off his nice cushy comfy skills! "Also, Snow Miser...?" Mother Nature questioned her boy. "Why on earth have you been traveling so often to Northville these past few days?"

Snow and Heat Miser both paused in their tracks. Snow Miser shifted his eyes to his brother as he tried to think up some good excuse. However before he could Heat Miser jumped up and pointed at Snow Miser and begun to spill the beans. "I TOLD YOU NOT TO GO THERE! But NOOOO, YOU wouldn't listen! Now look at what you've done! I told you that Mother was going to notice. You think my brains are boiled? Well yours are still stuck in the ICE AGE! You just HAD to mingle with that MORTAL girl, didn't you?!"

"OH, Way to go lava-lips! Look who's taken us out of the frying pan and into the POT!" The two of them started to throw their projectiles again.

"ENOUGH!" With a clash of thunder and lightning, Mother Nature glared at her boys. "...Snow Miser, answer my question." Sternly she stared at her son.

"I...I received a fan letter from a girl there in Northville. I was so surprised that someone actually sent me a letter after all of this time that I HAD to go down and personally thank them. At first it was just a little toying with her, since humans are fun to trick. However, I... over head her talking about this...festival thing recently. A SNOW Festival..! Mother, you of all should know how sad I've been recently. I figured, I could use this human girl to help me lift my spirits again! Maybe to even help others to relearn how to appreciate snow...! She loves everything that I do and I figured maybe by going with her to this Snow Festival, I might...just have a chance to change the view on snow! Is it so wrong to want to regain the passion for what you do and love...?"

Thinking this over Mother Nature was unsure but decided to allow it. "Fine then, I'll allow it. It's refreshing to hear that you're taking such an interest in your special gift again. Though I'm worried that you will not find what you're looking for. Humans are very fickle creatures. One minute they love the sun and the next they are bashing it. Without thinking about the importance of the weather and what it means to them. Please, be careful my son. Well then, moving on...! The candidates for this year's Element of the year award are Heat, Snow and Wind. You boys do your best...and show your worth to the world..!"

"Yes, Mother!" The three of them chimed together as they glared at one another. Each one eying the competition down already trying to think of ways to sabotage one another.

"Well, I guess I'll be on my way then...! I have to go mingle with the mortal to help out the reputation for snow." Turning to his snow form he yet again traveled to Northville. When he arrived Indi was inside her home cooking herself up some dinner. Playfully he knocked on the door as he waited for her to answer. Raising an eyebrow Indi walked over and opened it. To her surprise there stood Snow Miser.

"Snow Miser! Come in, come in...! Heh, unless, you prefer it out there..." Indi smacked herself lightly as she thought about it. Her house was on the 'warm' side from having been cooking. "Can you stand being in heat for long without melting or...?"

"Huh? OH!" Laughing Snow Miser walked in and closed the door behind him. "Of course I can...! I've had to deal with living next to my Brother for years. Heat Miser...? Heh, If I can't stand a little heat compared to him, I'm in trouble!" Winking he smiled as he glanced around her home. "So...I..came to discuss the snow festival! How are we going to make me fit in...?" Curiously he watched her as he stepped closer.

"I'm SO glad that you asked! I went out earlier today and bought some things. We'll have to apply some make-up to your face, You don't mind do you? We can't have you walking around looking blue after all! It'd give you away in a heart beat...!" All smiles she started shifting through a bag to find it. "Here we go!" Holding it out for him to look at she blushed as she shifted her gaze to the floor. "I'll help you put it on. It'll give you more of a skin tone..."

"Is something the matter...?" Blinking at her, Snow Miser placed a hand on her shoulder.

"O-oh no..no.. I uh.. Oh! There's one more thing...!" Running off to grab the bag she left Snow Miser standing there rather confused. While she was out of the room he decided to wander around it a little. The first thing that caught his eye was the Christmas tree. A soft gasp escaped his lips as he looked over all of the blue, white and crystal ornaments on the tree. All of them either had the patterns of snowflakes on them or were in the shape of snow or icicles. Gently he touched a few of the frosted looking ones. Just staring at the tree he felt some sort of warm feeling escalate in his chest down to his belly. Even his cheeks had felt like they had turned warm. He thought perhaps it was just the warmth of the house in general. Soon enough Indi returned with a blond wig. "TA-DA!" Smiling widely she held it up for him to see. "I didn't know what color you'd choose yourself, but, I thought since you like white I'd go with the closest hair color I could find...! It's at least a little bit blond colored.. I hope you don't mind.."

"Oh, no...! Not at all.. Hmn..." Taking it he placed the wig on top of his head adjusting it to the best of his ability. "There...! What do you think...?" Again the warm sensation filled his cheeks as he glanced at Indi.

"I think you look so cool...! No one's going to be able to...tell..." Biting her lower lip she shyly looked away a funny feeling crossing her belly. Unfortunately her attention was quickly taken away by the scent of something burning. "OH NO, THE FOOD!" Flailing she bolted for the kitchen. Sliding across her floor using her socks she stopped at the stove just in time to turn it off. "WHEW...! Haha, it doesn't look too bad..! Just a little black on the edges..!" Sighing with relief she laughed a little embarrassed.

"Haha! Hey, That was totally cool...! You know, I bet you'd be great with Ice Skating...!" Walking into the kitchen Snow Miser leaned against one of the counters.

"W-Well I uh...I do skate. I like Ice Skating." It then dawned on her that she hadn't quite offered him a darn thing. "OH! I'm so sorry! I... i don't know if you eat hot food, warm food or what... B-but would you like some dinner..? I mean it's all set to go... I uh... H-Here's a plate!" Grabbing one out of the cupboard she placed it on the table. "Please, have a seat..!"

"Well, thank you..!" Taking a seat at the table he smiled at the chicken with cheese sauce. "B-but..Warm food tends to bother me." Looking at the food, hot food wasn't really his thing. Though he didn't want her to be burdened with making him a meal while hers got cold. Despite that she appeared to love cold things, she'd worked so hard to make herself that warm meal... There was no way he'd ruin it.

"No no, I insist...!" Indi frowned as she leaned on the edge of the table and stared him square in the eye. "There's gotta be something you'd like here." As she started to list them off Snow Miser just smiled to himself. No matter how many times he'd shaken his head she persisted. "Oh c'mon..! I know you're trying to be a gentlemen but you're not helping me...! Okay, how about Pasta salad? A Salad? Whole wheat pasta with peanut sauce? Creamy corn soup chilled?" Tapping her foot impatiently she eyed down the Miser playfully.

"Oh alright, if you insist! I'll take some Pasta salad with an ice cold drink...!" Grinning he laughed softly at her determination.

"HAHA! A WINNER!" Pointing at him she winked as she twirled on over to the fridge and happily pulled out the container. Along with the pasta she served him a nice cold glass of iced tea. "Alright, you'd better tell me what you think about those and be honest! I made them myself! I wrote down some of these great recipes from the Food Channel..!" All smiles now she sat down and finally started to eat her food. This definitely had felt weird. She hadn't actually sat down and ate dinner with anyone in years! She'd moved out of her mothers house a long time ago. In a way it was nice to have some company and the company she'd found was most definitely welcomed.

Admiring her spirit he laughed at how quirky this girl seemed to be. "You my dear, drive a hard bargain! I'd even say you have a bit of an icy glare in there somewhere!" Motioning to her eyes he chuckled and started to eat. The second he'd bit down it felt like his taste buds had rejoiced. Ever since he'd lived on his own he had his Flakes make all of his food! Let's just face it a bunch of tiny little minions do not know how to make a filling home cooked meal. "This...is.. DELICIOUS!" Happily he started to eat the food, almost inhaling it. His table manners were definitely next to none. Recalling all of those times he'd propped his feet up onto the table at his Mothers house. Having been a rather slow eater herself she was very shocked to see how quickly Snow Miser inhaled the food. "W-Would it be okay to have more...?"

"Of course...! Eat as much as you like...!" Watching him get excited about the food she just stared. There was almost something cute about him. How he moved, how he talked, the way he acted. Sure, he was into himself and his work a little bit, but really what guy wasn't? The entire time Snow Miser had started to tell her a story. However she couldn't pay attention, her thoughts were lost on the fact that thee Snow Miser was in her house and eating her food, asking for her help..! Only a week ago had she sent that letter and the two of them met.. now this! This was...amazing! Suddenly she snapped out of it once he'd asked her if she were alright, "Y-Yes..! Continue!" bashfully she listened and scrunched herself up shyly, pulling her legs up against herself at the table as she listened. Gently she rested her chin on her knees.

Once dinner had finished and Snow Miser explained he intended to stay there that night, Indi helped him to the couch. "Here you go! I promise this couch is really really comfy. Here's a nice squishy pillow..." Fluffing it she placed it at one end. "Aaannd...here's a blanket with snowflakes on it...! Oh and just in case..." Smiling sweetly she held out a plush toy. "A snowflake to ...cuddle.. I...I don't know if you'd need it, but it's there... I mean... of course you won't need it.. I uh... Well, Good night..." She herself had placed on a full-bodied pajama all covered in snow flakes.

"Thank you...! I appreciate it...! These'll be great..." Staring at the plush toy he waited until she was out of sight. He sighed gently to himself as that warm feeling filled his chest and cheeks again. He thought she looked cute in the full body PJ. "Well, I guess it's just you and I flaky...!" Squishing the toy close, he removed his jacket and gloves before going to bed. Having peered around the corner Indi giggled softly to herself and blushed heading off to bed.


	4. Enter Doubt

((The song at the end of this story, "The North Winds Better" was made by ME. Therefore it is illegal to use/steal WITHOUT my permission. )))

As the next day came around the sun had slowly risen into the sky. Snow Miser being a rather big early bird was already up. He'd already been to his home and back. Still there was no sign of Indi being up yet. 

" Huh..Well the clock says it's already 10:30AM..! She couldn't still be sleeping could she...?" Sliding on over to her room he gently knocked first. When there was no answer he slowly opened it and looked inside. There she was laying in her bed surrounded by a sea of plush toys. Gently she hugged and squeezed one of the pillows tightly. Snow Miser didn't know what to make of it at first. Then a smile swiftly formed on his face. He supposed she used them to keep her company. Kind of like how he had his Flakes, only the plushies couldn't talk. Scratching the top of his head snapped his fingers and leaned into the room a little. Taking in a deep breath he soon exhaled sending out a rather big chill in the air toward her. Shivering she opened her eyes and grabbed up the blanket to wrap around her sleepily. She kind of brushed it off not really allowing it to sink in. "Wakey, wakey..! We've got a festival to attend remember...?"

As soon as she heard that voice she jolted straight up in bed. "AH!" she cried out as she spotted him there in her door way. With a THUD she landed on the floor having fallen out. "I'm GOOD!" She grinned to herself and blushed deeply. Snow Miser's eyes widened at first as he started to rush over and help her. When she stated that she was good however, he paused in his tracks and laughed.

"Sorry 'bout the rude awakening, but, I get a little restless sometimes.." Shrugging he tried to look innocent.

'O-oh no... It's okay..! I'm just a late sleeper..! I usually don't have anyone waking me up this early while I'm on vacation.." Yawning she waves a hand in front of her mouth. Sleepily she passed him up and made her way into the kitchen. Raising his eyebrows Snow Miser followed after her.

"Vacation...? What do you normally do...?" Going into the fridge he pulled out the iced tea, getting himself a glass of it.

"Oh uh, I usually am a Kindergarten teacher. I guess that's where I gained my love of toys from." Laughing softly Indi fixed herself up a bowl of cereal. "I always find so many that are just too cute.. "

"Is that also where you gained your love for my totally cool snow from?" Grinning, Snow Miser posed as he tried to take in all of that glory.

"Haha, no.. uh, Dad almost always worked. So when he'd come home from business he'd always bring home a snow globe. That collection is in another room..." She flashed her eyes at him nervously as she turned and took a few bites. "Every winter though, right around the beginning of December he would come home..! The first snowfall almost always signaled that time when he'd be home. He always played with me out there. We'd have snowball fights, build snowmen, he even put me on a hockey team..! I used to be really good at it too.. I stopped though. Now I only watch it on TV...! Favorite sport." Setting the now finished bowl in the sink she washed it.

"Used to be good at it...? Why aren't you good at it now...?" Finishing up his drink, he too washed it and placed it aside.

"Oh, That's because my Dad was the only one teaching me how to skate. Heh, after he passed away I didn't really have anyone to teach me. None of my friends were into that sort of thing, my Mother didn't know how to and we couldn't afford to pay for lessons. So slowly but surely I just lost touch with it, even got kicked off of the hockey team. So...yeah..Heh..!" Poking her fingers together she looked toward the door she motioned at it. "Well, I'm going to get changed into my snow gear! Be back in just a minute..!"

Snow Miser just stood there his hand that'd been putting the iced tea back shaking slightly. So she'd lost her father? Where was her mother? He hadn't ever met his father so he didn't know what it was like to have one. However, he could only imagine if that'd happened to him with his Mother. She must've felt so heart broken and lonely without her parents around. He hoped he'd never have to experience that. Looking down at it he only just then noticed he'd turned the entire container into snow. Gasping he covered his mouth and unfroze it. "Heheh.." Putting it back into the fridge he walked into the front room and paced back and forth. "I'll do it...I'll teach her myself..! After all, why enter a contest if you can't win..?"

"You enter it for fun silly! It's not about winning or losing. It's about having fun and being around someone you like..or love..!" Standing in front of him wearing a long magenta colored jacket with a white fur trim near the bottom was Indi! The sleeves were decorated with soft and dark purple stripes near the end, the jackets hood with extended fuzzy pom-poms was hiding under her double-colored blue scarf. She wore a matching pair of boots for her coat, but her gloves matched her scarf. "Well, I'm ready to go..!"

Hearing what she had to say about winning Snow Miser was a little taken back. Normally these humans were greedy and forceful with what they wanted. Almost always they cared only about winning. Wait, had she said love..? "Of course..." Thinking about those words he smiled.

"But, you're not..." Staring she smacked her forehead as she removed her gloves. "Alright, we've gotta get you painted...! C'MON!" Quickly she grabbed his hand and dragged him into the bathroom. By the time they were done he looked no different than any other person. His skin was pale but at least he didn't look like he'd frozen to death. The blond wig sat perched snugly upon his head with a pair of ear muffs to hide his ears pointed tips. "Perfect!" Giving him the thumbs up Indi laughed and grabbed his hand. "C'mon...! Let's go...!" Rushing outside with him she closed and locked her door up. "Okay, we'll take my car and ..." Before she could even finish Snow Miser picked her up into his arms.

"I have a better form of transportation. One healthier to the Earth..." Quickly he turned both himself and her into his snow form and flew off. Once at the festival grounds Snow Miser found a safe spot and reformed with her. "Ta-Da...! Snow is better." Grinning smugly he looked down at her and was caught by surprise. "Hmn? What's the matter...?" Blinking at her he noticed her face was a deep red almost to where it matched her jacket.

"NOTHING!" Laughing nervously she gently squirmed to try and get out of his arms. Her face still blushed over she tried to hide it with her scarf. "I'm just a...a little dizzy! I'll be okay soon." Doing her best to make up an excuse she giggled as he put her down. "So where to first...?"

"Like I said, I'm going to finish your ice skating lessons! What skills can you remember learning...?" Smiling Snow Miser waited to hear her answer.

"...None..." Trying to act really cute she swayed back and forth as she bit her bottom lip. Giving him those big eyes she batted her eyelashes. In turn he just stared at a loss for words and gently smacked his forehead.

Back at his home Heat Miser order around his Flames. "We need more steam, more heat...! South Town isn't sizzling yet...!" Huffing the Miser was rather irritated as it was from his brother hanging around that human girl. That and what could he say...? He missed fighting with him over things! It just didn't seem right that they hadn't bickered once that day. "Pheh, who needs him anyway..." Pouting he glared at the floor until he heard someone speak from behind him.

"Not you that's for sure! I don't see why he doesn't just stay down there. Look at all of this magnificent work you've done here brother. You work yourself so hard, sweat, sulfur and tears..." Sighing and fakely wiping a tear from his eye, North Wind moved in closer. "...and our brother, Snow Miser is down there mingling with the humans. TRYING to out due you no less, trying to get everyone to love snow and winter weather again. Just when you were about to reach your glory of the Element of the Year award. Don't tell anyone I told you this but... I heard it through the grape vine that Mother WAS fixing to give you that award... Now she's been speaking about our dear brother Snow Miser. All because he wanted to go down there and reset the winter spirit.."

"W-what...? Y-You mean...Mother was talking about ME winning that award?" A look of excitement brushed Heat Miser's face. "I... I didn't think she'd noticed all of my hard work and effort..! You know I tried so hard to be focused and good...! Boy was I scared when he started hanging around that HUMAN girl. PFFT, AND he wanted me to hide it from Mother! He just can't keep himself away... I swear it's almost like something's possessed him.." Shaking his head Heat Miser growled. "WHAT...?! WAIT, Did you say Mother is now...thinking of giving the award to that...that CRISPY CREATON just because he decided to jeopardize... BRRGHH! I won't tolerate that! There's gotta be a way to change it! I'll show him...!"

"I know, isn't it just sad when your own kin back-stabs you...? It ...it makes me want to cry..." Sniffling and putting on a fake front he pretended to get sad. "He's our brother..and he can't even be satisfied with the possibility of one of us winning. He's just... How despicable...! Risking your own brother's chance at an award just to win it for yourself. If I were you, I'd go down there and ruin his chances...! Show him how it feels to have everything you've worked so hard for explode in your face..." North Wind continued his play by play to make it Miser against Miser.

"...You know what...? You're right! I WILL go down there and show him just what HEAT can do...!" With that Heat Miser transported himself to Northville.

"...Perfect...! Haha, and when those two create such a mess, Mother will remove both of them from the list, leaving ME to be the only one eligible for the win...! It's like taking candy from a baby...!" Laughing loudly North Wind fled almost as quickly as he'd came. It was time for him to work his own way of making his mother impressed with him. Rather pleased with himself the North Wind laughed as his Breeze minions moved in close. Nodding his head a song cue was in order so the North Wind started to sing.

"I'm the whispering wind that whispers in your ear

I'm the cool breeze during a hot summer seer

You know it's me by the way I blow

Yes, The North Winds better than Heat or Snooowww...

I'm the one who messes up your hair

I'm hot and cool because I'm air

You know I always go with the flow

Yes, The North Winds better than Heat or Snoooww...

I'm a destroyer yes it's true,

But my winds also help, you out too

So before that vote is even cast

try to remember that North Winds a blast~!

My 2 brother's ruined my last plaaan...

They had to help out that jolly old fat maaan!

So this time around I'm not playing nice

I'm going to show that WINDS better than heat or ice!

I'm gonna take what they hold dear

Yes, North Winds gonna win Element of the yeeaaar~!

Haha...!

Because I'm the one who messes up your hair

I'm hot and cool because I'm air

You know I always go with the flow

Yes, The North Winds better than Heat or Snoooww...

Yeah, North Winds better than Heat or Snooooooowww~!"

Twirling as he finished his song the North Wind grinned evilly as he disappeared into his air fortress.


	5. A Hot Mess

Having lead her over to the ice rink Snow Miser gently placed a hand on her shoulder. "Alright, So here we are...! This is going to be EASY alright..? I know you're scared but just take it one step at a time and you'll be okay...!" Looking over the rink he tried to reassure her.

"SCARED?" Laughing she placed her hands on her hips and looked at him. "You've gotta be kidding me! I'm not scared..! I know I can do this...!" Feeling rather motivated and sure of herself she walked toward the edge of the rink. "Alright, Let's go..! You and Me..." She pointed from herself to the ice rink.

"Indi, I...I don't think you should do that by yourself..!" Reaching out a hand toward her, Snow Miser tried to make it in time. Though it'd been too late she pushed herself out onto that ice and started to attempt to skate. Those attempts however failed really miserably. He winced and flinched as he watched her flail around uncontrollably. She spun around in a circle just trying to stay up straight. Well, he had warned her! "Well, You have to admire her spirit, she tried it even though she knew she'd fail.." With a roll of his eyes he entered the rink. Holding out his arms he snatched Indi into them. "Now, just go with the flow, okay...?" His one arm held her around her waist while the other softly gripped her arm.

"O-okay..." Indi's expression had changed to being very nervous about skating.

"Chill, man, You're doing fiiiine..! As long as you have _me_ as your teacher, you'll do amazing.." Placing a self-righteous hand on his chest he winked. "It's the advantage of being, Snow Miser.."

Raising an eyebrow at him Indi smirked, "Right, Your Mr. Big Ego, Your Mr. Snow..!" She jingled out as she playfully teased him. His eyes widened as he looked at her and smirked right back. Waving his hand he caused a little ice bump for her to trip over slightly. Though he never dropped her.

"Oops..! Sorry, Didn't see that..." Shrugging his shoulders Snow Miser stuck out his tongue and winked to show he had played right back. A grin formed on his face not long afterward.

"UH!" Indi's eyes widened as her mouth gaped open to a playful offended expression. "Hey! You can't do that! That's SO unfair, blizzard breath...!" Elbowing him softly the two of them laughed. Blushing she looked away and shook her head. "S-Sorry..."

"SORRY? What for..?! You're finally starting to come around..! I wondered if you had more of a playful side somewhere..." Smiling he reassured her to just be herself around him. "Okay, so look at my legs now. See how they move..? Try to mimic it... 1...2...1..2..." As he spoke Indi watched closely. Soon she started to mimic the movements slowly getting the hang of it. "There ya go..!"

Heat Miser appeared onto the scene in a burst of flames. People close by stared in awe though a few of them thought it may be special effects. "HRMPF... Where the heck is that cold hearted brother of mine?" Talking mainly to himself he walked right past the people who stared at him. At one point a man stopped him in his tracks.

"HEY! You there, the guy with the red hair! Yeah, The elves are needed in the back. C'MON you've gotta hurry!" Placing a hand on his shoulder he lead Heat Miser off.

"ELF?! Who are you calling an elf...?" The Miser started to get disgruntled as his hair flashed a fiery glow.

"Oh...! I see, you're supposed to be the Heat Miser! GREAT, We need that for the production..! You're one of our most important players..!" Laughing the man continued to lead him away.

"I don't have time for this. I'll be back later!" As Heat Miser grumped he took off running the opposite way.

"W-WAIT...! Oh...I'm so fired for this.." The man whined as he kicked some of the snow.

"Your doing fantastic, Sugar Plum!" Snow Miser smiled as he skated backwards to show off. "Keep this up and you'll be a pro in no time!" Laughing he lifted his leg and spun around.

"Sugar Plum?" Indi blushed brightly at the name first, nearly losing her balance. "AH...! H-Hey...! Now hold on a second, Snowy...! I didn't say you could call me that."

"Snowy...?" Blinking, Snow Miser stared at her and smiled. "Mrs. C calls me Snowy.." Moving in he changed the subject as he grabbed her hands. "Here, I'll teach you some of my tricks..! Put your leg here...and lean there...TA-DA! HAHAHA, Lovely...!"

"A-are you sure..th-this is right...?" Feeling REALLY nervous about trying to balance like that Indi prayed he wouldn't let go. She felt so oddly warm in his arms like this. It felt so strange to be this close to her favorite weather elemental. She loved it so much but, she wondered how she was so lucky to be doing this with him? Indi could feel their friendship starting to turn into something a little more than that. As scared as she was to be skating around, she still felt safe in his arms. The feeling of his hands holding hers or his arm around her waist, the feeling of his back against hers, gave her butterflies. These were feelings she was trying to hold back. He's an elemental, would he even feel the same?

"Simmer down...! You can trust me. I'm not cold-hearted you know.." Gently taking her into a dip, Snow Miser gazed right down into her blue eyes. " Have a little faith.." Switching positions he helped her into yet another one, guiding her around the rink and even into a spin before he pulled her back. His arm wrapped around her waist he smiled as the odd warm feeling rushed back to his cheeks. There was that feeling again. He knew what it was, he just didn't want to admit it. It wasn't allowed and yet he couldn't help but start falling for her. If he was honest with himself, this is part of the reason he wanted to teach her how to skate. An excuse to be close to her and gaze into those eyes. 

At this point Heat Miser spotted them and gasped. The crowd around his brother clapped and cheered for him and her. His first concern was how he looked at the human girl. That is, until he overheard one of the people talking about how they'd forgotten how much fun snow and winter could be. Some of the better things to look forward to. Narrowing his eyes Heat Miser growled.

"I'll show you to trash my hard earned title and to mingle with humans..!" Placing his hands on the ice rink Heat Miser slowly started to send out a heat wave through it. Slowly but surely the ice started to turn mush and crack. A few people on one end had already fallen through. As the noises started Snow Miser's eyes widened. He'd heard that sound before...! Looking down at the ice as it cracked and sent people in, he cried out in fear. If he hadn't been in this contest and needed to stay disguised, he'd of used his powers however, he did the only thing he could do now.

"HANG ON!" Just as the ice gave out underneath him and Indi he pulled her up into his arms. "GOTCHA!" Wincing as he landed waist deep in the water Snow Miser peered at Indi. "A-are you okay?" Looking at her with honest concern he waited for her answer.

"Yes.." Indi nodded her face filled with blush as they both realized they were inches away from each other.

"...G-Glad to..hear it.. I uh..." Snow stared at her lips, she, they were so close to each other. Shaking his head to snap out of it, Snow Miser glanced around the rink. Unfortunately for him, he hadn't spotted his brother yet. Though this little event wreaked of his handy work. Climbing out of the water with some help of another person he smiled. After thanking them he glanced at Indi and blushed yet again. "Well, I'm glad you aren't wet...! I would've hated it if you'd ended up catching a cold. We wouldn't have been able to continue with operation, Make them love Snow!"

At first she was flattered by his concern and kindness. That is until she heard the second half of his reasoning behind it, giving a soft laugh. Still she nodded and agreed with him, "Yeah... but we should call it, Operation, Winter Wonderland! Whatta ya think?" Giggling she tried to just carry on with it. "And are you going to be okay...?" Pointing at his wet waist line to shoes.

"That is so cool that it's frigid!" Grinning at her Snow snagged her hand into his giving it a gentle squeeze. "I'll be fine..! I LOVE the cold remember...? C'mon! Let's try that snowman contest shall we...?" Dragging her off he decided to ignore the first incident. Arriving at the scene the two of them looked over the entries. Some of them were really good. "Oh we're SO going to win this one...! I'll start on the bottom... you start on the Middle..!"

"Oki doki!" No sooner had they started to make the halves did Heat Miser start up his antics again. Laughing evilly he aimed his first fireball at Indi's pathetic attempt. "Hey! " Crying out she shielded herself from the flying snow. "What the heck was that?!" Narrowing her eyes she looked around for a culprit, but everyone appeared to be too busy with their own to have done it. This irritated her as she was trying her best to impress Snow Miser now. After all she loved the element of snow, she wrote him a letter telling him how big of a fan she was about it. She'd been called the snow NERD of the village for Pete sake..! So far however she felt as if she hadn't lived up to her title. Yes, she was shy especially when meeting new people and being around those she liked, but she was very straight forward about things. Yes, She usually kept a cool and relaxed view about situations. However, once you've crossed that very thin line there was a personality just waiting to EXPLODE.

"What is it...?" Blinking at her Snow Miser stared at what was left of the part she had worked on. Just as he'd started to speak his half then exploded into a mess. Heat Miser had just tossed a fireball directly into the middle of it. "..WHAT THE?!" His eyes widened as he moved back over to it. "That is so NOT cool..." Gritting his teeth he glared around the area. Both of them swallowing their anger proceeded to try to rebuild, and rebuild, and rebuild. Every-time the same old thing happened to the snowman. Needless to say they had both started to get a little bit more irritated. 

"WHAT'S THE MATTER? TOO FROZEN WITH FEAR TO FACE ME BROTHER?" Smirking to himself he waited for his brother to take the bait. However, Heat Miser was too busy laughing to reply.

"What's going on here...?" Raising an eyebrow Indi folded her arms and pouted at Snow Miser. "Weird things are happening and I'm not blind to them. The rink melted and now our snow men act as if they'd eaten too much of Gram's Explosive Chili..." Tapping her foot on the ground she waited for a reply.

"Nngh, It's my brother, Heat Miser... He seems to have caught onto my plan. Even if not, he still is trying to keep people from enjoying the snow either way! Looks like he's having fun ruining our chances of winning...in two ways. Normally I'd use my powers but, you like to play fair and I can't expose who I am or we lose. Well, That and I did promise MOTHER to keep the fighting to a minimum..." Rolling his eyes Snow Miser now pouted himself as he glared in the direction of his brother.

So that was it huh? THAT is the reason why the ice melted and her snow man turned to slush. Now she knew why her chances at getting Snow Miser to notice her abilities in the slightest had started to fail. He was ruining her chances to impress him. Besides that Snow Miser's chances at getting people interested in snow was failing! His hopes were now being crushed. Now she had motivation, now, helping him win is what counted...! The corner of her lip twitched as she smirked rather evilly to herself. "Oh Snowy, Don't hold back on my account. Hit the bubbling boil with everything you've got..!" Giving a toothy sly grin she looked over at him.

Well here was a different side of her that he hadn't quite seen. Boy did she look cute when she was angry. His cheeks started to fill with blush again as he watched her. "You've got it, Cutescicle...!" A feisty grin slowly swept his face as he eyed down his brother. He waited until no one was looking then started to open fire on him. Meanwhile Indi took this chance and started over on the Snowman one more time. The two of them started to work together to get the project finished and keep it protected. Getting hit with one of his brother's snow-bolts Heat Miser growled flared up.

"HAH, FINALLY! Looks like things are starting to heat up around here...!" Heat Miser shouted as he started to fling the fireballs toward his brother and Indi once again. The first few managed to miss them by a long shot. Instead it nailed some of the other contestants snowmen. Not really even caring about the others seeing him at this point Snow Miser did his best to protect their snowman. Every-time his brother fired he sent out a blast that blocked it.

"HAH, I personally think things just turned out to be a bit COOLER!" Shouting back, Snow Miser sent a wave of snowballs at his hot headed brother. Every now and then he'd peek back at Indi to find out how the project was coming along. "You almost done back there...? " Concentrating fully on stopping the fireballs he hadn't been able to fully see the snowman yet.

"Almost but the judging still isn't for a few more minutes anyways..!" Working as quickly as she could, Indi tried her best to make the snowman look good. She could hear the others around her as they complained and became rather enraged at the little battle going on between Snow Miser and Heat Miser. Some of them worked to fix theirs up before it was too late. Still, the one they focused their annoyance toward was Heat Miser. Seeing as it appeared that Snow Miser was attempting to help SAVE their pieces, even if he was really just trying to save his own. "FINISHED!" Grinning she moved next to Snow Miser. "It's all done now..!"

"Fantastic! It looks - !" Before Snow Miser could even finish his sentence his brother annihilated it with one blast. "AH!" Gasping Snow looked toward his brother and glared. Looking at Indi and seeing her devastated face, he frowned and started to lose his cool. That is until what happened next.

"WHY YOU SIZZLING FRAGGLESNAP! YOU RUINED MY HARD WORK! I'LL SHOW YOU TO MESS WITH ME YOU BLAZING BUTTHEAD..!" Grabbing up a few snowballs Indi tossed them at Heat Miser with great force. Now normally, Heat would've quickly dodged or melted it down but one line got to him, 'You ruined my hard work!'. That's exactly how he felt about his brother doing exactly what he'd been just now. A part of him had started to feel just a little bad, until one of her snowballs slammed him right in his face.

"Hahaha! Good aim!" Laughing Snow Miser took this opportunity to rebuild the snow man while Heat Miser was distracted. Using his power he willed up a pile of snow and started to sculpt it. Some of the other contestants were already getting theirs judged so he had to hurry.

"Look, I don' t know what your problem is but stop taking it out on other people! Y'know, I worked really hard to make that thing and impress your brother. THEN you just HAD to go and blow it up...! THANKS you jerk!" Poking Heat Miser right in the chest Indi frowned.

"PHEH, Impress my brother?! Like THAT'D ever happen! My brother isn't very easily impressed if it isn't about himself...!" Heat Miser bickered back.

"Oh really..? Well that certainly sounds familiar now doesn't it..?" Sighing Indi tried to regain her cool. Forcing herself to stop the yelling, she still continued on the conversation.

"ME?! HAHA, No way...! That idiot icecap gets more attention from Mother and everyone! He's ALWAYS been the favorite! Then, when I finally get a 10 year streak of people actually LIKING heat more than snow... he's gotta try to bring back his name...!" Rolling his eyes Heat Miser folded his arms.

"Well, I'm sorry to hear that, but I'm along with Snowy on this one! Honestly, I myself am sick of people bashing snow and ice in general..! Not that it gives them any right to also bash the sun and heat for things either mind you.. but - " Just as she'd started to make a point Indi found herself interrupted by the Judge.

"WINNER!" Both her and Heat Miser stopped and looked at the judge as he awarded the winning trophy to Snow Miser.

"This is one of the best snowmen I've ever seen! How'd you manage to get it so tall?" The Judge pointed to the snowman featuring Snow Miser with a toothy grin, posing with his foot placed on top of Heat Misers back. The Heat Miser underneath his foot looked really frazzled.

"Oh uh...it's just a...gift..!" Snow Miser tried to find the best way to explain it without lying, or saying that he used his powers. Running over to Snow Miser Indi stared at the trophy.

"W-We won?!" Laughing as he handed the trophy to her Indi hugged it. "THIS IS GREAT! I've never won anything before...!" Giggling she then hugged onto Snow Miser rather tightly. Rubbing her cheek against his chest she just continued to smile. Snow Miser's eyes widened at this reaction having not expected it. Blushing lightly he nervously started to move his arm, gently placing a hand on the back of her head. Quickly he hugged back feeling rather unsure about a few things that continuously passed through his mind. The moment lasted for only about a split second as Heat Miser stormed angrily toward his brother.

"How dare you! HOW DAAARE YOU!" Shouting at the top of his lungs Heat Miser's hair lit up in a fiery rage again. "How DARE you make a mockery of me in front of all of these people...! I'll show you, you Frozen Freak!" As Heat Miser leaped toward Snow Miser to pounce him, Snow gently pushed Indi out of the way.

"Stay back...!" Looking at her Snow Miser was worried she'd get hurt from his brothers enraged state. As the two of them collapsed in a wrestling mess they tumbled everywhere! "You could've hurt Indi, you Pyrotechnic PEON! Mother would've been furious! We'd of both been in trouble for SURE! If you're so worried about your PRECIOUS award, why don't you go back home and WORK on it..!? That's what I'M trying to do here..OR have you forgotten that Mother wanted us to act CIVIL..!?" Getting posed back to his feet he readied a snow-bolt.

"I know what Mother wanted. I was there...! But WORKING on keeping that award is why I'm here...! YOU'RE trying to ruin everything I worked so hard to gain over the last 10 years!" Snorting Heat Miser formed a few more fireballs throwing them at Snow Miser. Unfortunately they missed and crashed right into the giant snowman of Snow Miser. As it crumbled people scrambled to get out of the way. Snow gasped as he looked at Indi and remembered that her short legs didn't do so well in snow. With a quick run he tackled her out of the way.

"I've gotcha..!" He shouted and cradled her close as he eyed down his brother.

"ALRIGHT, BREAK IT UP! Who are you and why are you firing projectiles in a public place..?" A Police officer readied his night stick yelled. That was all it took before the music started and Heat Miser took center stage.

"I'm Mr. Green Christmas, I'm Mr. Sun...!" Starting to sing Heat Miser pointed to a few trees that were green and spun around until his little Flame minions aimed a spot light at him to mimic 'sun'. "I'm Mr. Heat Blister, I'm Mr. 101!" Making a random coal walk he danced across it making flames rise. "They call me Heat Miser..." Pointing to himself he grinned, "Whatever I touch, starts to melt in my clutch!" Happily moving from snowman to snowman he poked each of them 1 time. Almost immediately they melted to slush. "I'm Too Much!"

"He's Mr. Green Christmas, He's Mr. Sun..!" The Flames began to sing. "He's Mr. Heat Blister, He's Mr. 101!" Spinning around Heat Miser in a perfect circle they posed and pointed at him.

"They call me Heat Miser! Whatever I touch, starts to melt in my clutch!" Grabbing a hold of a shovel he melted it down.

"He's too much!" Again the Flames posed in front of him.

"Thank you! I never wanna know a day that's under 60 degrees! I'd rather have it 80, 90, 100 degrees!" As he Strutted across the stage he made arm movements to help his plea. Some of the crowd who actually agreed cheered and clapped. "I know some like it hot, but I like it REALLY hot...!"

"He's Mr. Green Christmas, He's Mr. Sun...!" The Flames and Heat Miser began to do a little bit of a kick-line themselves. "He's Mr. Heat Blister, He's Mr. 101!" Handing him a thermometer it popped.

"They call me Heat Miser...!" A show of fire danced around him as did his Flame Minions. "WHATEVER I touch., starts to melt in my clutch!" Touching the snow on the ground he melted a good portion of it away to reveal the green grass underneath. "I'm too much!" Posing with his minions he grinned.

"Too Much.." Both Snow and Indi flatly stated unamused with a few others. Though there was another portion of the crowd who again cheered and clapped.


	6. A Slippery Slope

Having been distracted by the people who cheered him on Heat Miser hadn't noticed that his brother and Indi slipped away. "C'mon...! Hurry...!" Holding his hand tightly in hers, she lead Snow Miser down a path. "I don't want your brother to catch up..!" Call it selfish but she just wanted to be alone with him. She wanted his attention on her rather than his brother, that and she was concerned for the safety of others. "You and your brother are dangerous to have around a lot of people. There are so many that could've been hurt..! Still...You were really awesome..!" Shyly she looked away and toward the trees.

"Thanks.." Looking at her Snow Miser blushed until he noticed she wasn't holding the trophy. "AH! W-Where's the trophy?!" Instantly he paused and looked around for it.

"Oh that...? I gave it to this little girl and her father. They tried so hard and had so much fun with building their snowman. They deserved it more than we did really. I got what I really wanted anyways...!" Smiling to herself Indi folded her arms behind her back.

"What's that...?" Raising an eyebrow Snow Miser was both amused and surprised that she'd given away the trophy.

"I just wanted to have a good time with you there. I wanted to see you having fun, being yourself. Not holding back just because I was there! Haha, and I can easily say that comes close to being THEE most fun I've ever had!" Spinning around a little Indi laughed. "How you stopped each fireball...pow, pow, pow! HAHA, that was AMAZING! And then you built the snowman sculpture like that? That was freaking cool! I remember the ones you'd made me...but that was just downright hilarious..!"

Snow Miser just stared at her a moment his face filling more and more with blush. His stomach and chest slowly turned warm. An urge charged through his body as he reached out and softly grabbed Indi's arm. Delicately he pulled her in close as he gazed down into her eyes. His hands started to shake lightly. A very nervous and curious expression worked itself onto his face. Oh he knew what he wanted to do. He wanted to do it so badly. His heart and mind were attracted to her. 'Kiss her, Kiss her already!' His heart shouted at him and yet his mind retaliated saying, 'NO! You know what's going to happen. Human and Elementals are FORBIDDEN to be together.' He could see the blush spread onto her face. She waited for that kiss to happen. More than anything she wanted it. Slowly he lead her face close to his, after all, What was one kiss? Just as their lips were about to meet a father and his kids ran by. "Ah!" Turning a deep shade of red he stared after the family and looked at her. "I uh...HAHA, oh, uhm, maybe we should get going? A-also you have something right there.." Grinning nervously he hoped that she wasn't angered now by him pointing it out. He'd just tried to change the subject. 

Indi's heart sank after he'd pulled away like that. They'd been so close! Upon hearing his excuses she herself now turned a deep red. "Y-yeah, I guess we should. Wh-what?" Her eyes widen as she touches her cheek. "I thought I covered that up!" Pulling her hood over her head she'd started to run in the direction that the family had gone. Oh she was embarrassed now having thought he'd only wanted to look at that nasty thing she covered earlier. Of course he didn't want to kiss her! She assumed she'd misread the situation.

"INDI! HOLD ON! I - ..didn't mean it..!" Shouting after her he tried to catch up. Once he had, he placed a hand on her shoulder. "Please don't run away from me again. I didn't mean to hurt your feelings.." 

"I'm hungry, why don't we stop here and get something to eat?" Indi glanced at the restaurant. Snow blinked and nodded in agreement, following her inside. They managed to get a window seat for Snow Miser. This way it'd help keep him chilled. Snow already knew what he'd wanted to eat. His menu layed out flat in front of him. Indi however had her face completely blocked by it still. A feeling of embarrassment still swirled in her stomach. Snow Miser furrowed his eyebrows as he reached over then pulled the menu down. 

"Indi, I..I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to upset you or hurt your feelings.."

"You didn't..." Smiling up at him Indi spoke really softly. "I just get embarrassed easily with things.."

"I didn't see anything on your face. Truth is I got _cold feet!_ Eh? Eh?" Laughing Snow Miser tried to joke with her. In turn she did laugh a little.

"Oh I see... you're just not ready for that yet..? " Smiling a bit more she clasped his hand. "Ohh, I knew it! I knew you were a little bit of a shy guy in there! You're very self-thought and funny, but you've got a shy guy too..!" Giggling she was happy again and stopped feeling so bad. Getting ready to interject he then just decided to go with it. It was better then trying to explain everything. "You could just tell me next time." Soon they'd put in their order and when the food arrived Snow Miser had a chicken salad. While she on the other hand had spicy food. At the sight of the spicy food Snow Miser gasped and stared at the plate in disgust.

"Those...are nachos with jalapeno and pico de gallo and a cup of chili?! " Pointing at her meal Snow Miser looked from her plate to her. "...AND Hot Chocolate!? Now hold on... I thought you LOVED the snow...! So how come you're eating all of this warm-up food Missy...?" Folding his arms he squinted at her a little.

"Well, I have taste-buds for spicy foods..! I also have taste-buds for Minty things...! I really love both... But, the way I look at is... I can enjoy the cold a lot more once I've been heated up! It just makes me appreciate the snow and cold that much more. It reminds me why I love it so much...! Then when I've finished I can enjoy a nice mint or candy cane..! Mint Chocolate chips my favorite ice cream..! Oh and blue moon." Laughing Indi started to eat her food. Snow Miser cringed as he watched her eat the food on the plate. Though this had made him start to think a little. There was a lot of honesty and truth behind that statement.

"It's like Mother says, What would we be without each other...?" Thinking about himself and Heat Miser he frowned a little. He'd started to think it over a little and tapped his chin. "Thanks, Indi..."

"Mmh, now here... try this...!" Holding out her hot chocolate to him Indi smiled. "C'mon, try it...! It's not too hot...and it has candy mint in there..!"

"I don't know..." Quivering his lip Snow groaned and took a very little sip. In seconds his eyes widened. It actually tasted really really good...! With the mint in it the heat was...tolerable..! "Whoa-ho! THIS IS GOOD!" Drinking more and more from the cup he hadn't yet realized he'd just finished her glass. When he looked in it he blushed. "Er..."

"Heheheh... Snow likes hot chocolate..ooo..what a rebel." She teased. When they finished up with the food they made their way back to the festival. After all they weren't finished there! There was still the actual ice skating contest and the sledding. "Alrighty.." Rubbing her hands together Indi grinned evilly. "We are going to OWN this sledding race!"

"Right...! So..you...you sit down first and I'll sit behind you..! It'll be easier for me to shield you in case my Sizzling Sibling appears..." Snow Miser had another reason for it as well. He'd have an excuse to actually hold her close again. Once she was seated he placed himself right behind her and wrapped his one arm around her. " Well I'm ready..!"

Blushing deeply at him holding her like that. She decided to take advantage of it and made herself snug against him. "Same, just need to wait for them to tell us to go.." Grinning goofily, Snow Miser hadn't minded her doing that one bit. As soon as they gave the signal they took off down the slope. The two of them laughed as they started on down it. "Wooowhoo!" Indi cried out, giggling to herself. Snow Miser just continued his laugh as he looked around at the competition. So earlier she said she was happy about seeing him having fun and being himself...? Okay Then! Waving a free hand he touched the snow willing it to push them a little faster. Once the two of them had caught up to some of the contestants he wiggled his fingers. The snow paths taking them into other directions. Then as a few others tried to pass he caused a light snow to fall on them as well. "SNOW MAN!" Gasping at the snowman being right their around the next bend they crashed right through it. Talk a bout karma being delivered immediately..! The boy who'd made it wasn't too happy though...

"Are you alright?" Looking rather worried, Snow Miser asked as he peered down at her. Indi raising an eyebrow stared at how the snow covered her.

"I look like a snowoman.. ." Indi stated flatly then laughed as they continued on their ride.

"Hey, My kinda woman..! "Snow Miser teased as he grinned on. This caused poor Indi to blush again and squeal out. She was thankful her face had turned red from the snow already. Just then the two of them noticed they were headed toward a giant thing of green. "What is...? OH no..!" That's when he realized it was a big patch of grass. His brother was no doubt behind it due to the way it steamed. "Look out, Indi! If we hit that we'll go flying..!"

"I...I can't...! It's not moving fast enough..!" Indi tried her best to move the sled out of the way. No matter how hard she tried though it just didn't want to budge.

"Hold on tight then...! I'll take over..." Looking toward his brother who just laughed off in the distance he smirked. Again using his power he manipulated the snow to move the sled out of the way of the patch. Though they'd just barely made it by it. The next thing they knew Heat Miser opened fire on them again. Carefully he moved the sled and dodged the blasts one by one. Every now and then he screamed out with her, though he did his best and remained focused.

"Oh yeah...?!" Heat Miser aimed and fired upon them again. This time he managed to hit the sled knocking Snowy and Indi off of it. Indi screamed out in terror as they landed in a jumble on the snow. "HAHA, STRIKE...! Looks like I'm on a HOT streak now...!" Creating himself a board out of igneous rock Heat Miser worked his way toward his brother with it.

"Hey, your board looks as HARD as your HEAD...!" Snow Miser laughed and looked at Indi who giggled a little. Still she worried about Heat Miser getting any closer to them. "Hmm..." Eying the board he grinned to himself. "Don't sweat it, remain cool, Sugar Plum! Just leave it to me..!" Waving his hands over the snow he formed he laughed again as he showed her. "TA-DA...!...It's...A SNOWBOARD! HAHA!"

"Haha, hah! "Pointing at it she giggled and shook her head. "I see what you did there! Haha...! But you can't be serious." Indi folded her arms over her chest.

"Oh yes, I can..! Hop on...!" Pulling her onto it Snow Miser used his power to push off and move down the slope with it. Indi blushed at first and tried to plea with him. Though it was too late he'd taken off. Screaming she climbed behind Snow and onto his backside she was so terrified. Clinging to his body for dear-life she cringed. " Don't worry, I'll protect you!" A very excited look plastered all over his face he very happily and easily maneuvered the board. In almost no time Heat Miser had worked his way closer to them, using his heat to melt some of the snow to excel. "You know this sport has MY name all over it right.? You've got no chance...!"

"We'll see how long THAT lasts! It'll be called Sun Boarding when I'm done with it!" Heat Snapped at his brother as he tried to get in closer.

"Ngggh, THEY HAVE A SPORT THAT'S LIKE THIS AND TAKES PLACE IN THE SUMMER ALREADY! It's called SURFING, mud boarding AND there is a sun boarding down sand..!" Indi shouted as she kept her eyes closed tightly. Her grip never letting up on Snow Miser as they swayed from side to side.

"Nobody asked you..!" Firing a few more shots at them Heat Miser smirked. Snow Miser just laughed at his brother for getting upped by the human. Holding on tight to her, Snow Miser forced the snowboard to spin around. Her eyes widened, Indi screamed as if she were on a roller-coaster. Swerving the snow below him Snow easily dodged his brother's projectiles. Doing a few spins here and there Snow Miser lifted a snow path into the air away from his brother. "What the?!" Heat Miser stared in awe at the path at first. "...That is pretty... RRGH, I'LL SHOW YOU!" Shaking his head as Snow Miser stuck out his tongue at him, he aimed along with his minion. "Let's show them how to have a real blast...'ey?" Firing a beam at the side of the snow path it started to shake and crumble.

"Whoa...!" Snow Miser cried out as he watched it.

"OHHH no, no, no, no, NO! We're gonna DDIIIIIE!" Her teeth gritted tightly as she panicked. "Do something, DO SOMETHING!"

HIGHLY amused by her reaction to all of this he laughed. "You worry too much...!" Moving his hands around he jumped the snow board onto a series of snow steps that led down. On the last one he pulled yet another spin landing in a crouched position with it right next to his brother. At this point Indi was so scared all she could do was stare wide-eyed and frown. "Sorry to build a wall between us BRO, but the view is HORRIBLE! Look at what you've done to her..!" Laughing he raised up a snow wall. "Now how about some COLD PUNCH?!" Running a finger along the snow, the side of the wall near his brother formed into snow-fists that launched to hit him. The corner of Indi's mouth cracked into an almost crazed smile as she snickered then laughed at Snow Misers jokes. However, her right eye twitched very lightly to show she was still unnerved by the 'adventure'. Hearing her laugh Snow started to smile more. Finally she seemed to enjoy it..! As his brother melted the wall down Snow again raised a snow path not too far ahead. The brothers would move back and forth, front and back of each other trying to hit the others board. "Your aim is ICE COLD BRO~!"

"HAH, Is that why they call me the Hot Shot of basketball, HAH, Or how about when we play HOCKEY?! Isn't that supposed to be YOUR thing...?" Heat Miser bellowed back at his brother.

"HRMPF, That's because you only play when it's ROLLER hockey..! I prefer ICE hockey..." Making a rather disgruntled look an idea formed in his mind. "GASP, M-MOTHER!" With a frightened look he pointed in the opposite direction.

"M-Mother?!" Getting wide-eyed Heat looked toward where Snow Miser pointed. "Hey she's not... AAAH!" When Heat Miser looked back in front of him a giant icicle had formed causing him and his minion to crash into it. "OOOFF!"

"HAHA, Now that's what I call a POP-SCICLE! HAHA!" Laughing Snow Miser had taken the snow path he created. Doing a loop as if he were riding a roller coaster, Snow Miser cheered out in fun as they jumped off the 'ramp' he'd made at the end of it. "WOOWHOO!" Of course poor Indi just screamed all the way until they'd landed and slid to a stop at the bottom. When the two of them reached there the crowd cheered and clapped. Indi who finally let go dropped to the ground as she snapped out of her scared state.

"W-we won...? We won?! WE'RE ALIVE?!" Laughing she jumped up and down as she smiled at Snow Miser.

"You bet we did my little snowflake!" Laughing Snow Miser grabbed her hands and jumped up and down with her. Soon after he twirled around in a circle with her both of them with their arms stretched out. The two of them laughed and broke out into a little party dance. "Haha, We're cool~! UHMPH!" His eyes widened, Snow Miser blinked as he found a snowball in his face.

"...Don't ever do that again." Indi looked at him seriously then smiled and winked. "K?"

"Okay.." Blushing Snow Miser rubbed his cheek.


	7. Hot n Cold

Soon after the two celebrated their 'victory' of not dying on the slope. They'd found out that due to all of the damage caused by them the skating challenge was moved. The festival had now closed until the repairs could be made. As they walked home the two detoured through the park that'd been lighted with Christmas ornaments. It looked amazing seeing all of the trees glowing like that. "Y'know I've never really had as much fun as I've had today. Well, outside of showing that Freaky Fireball who's boss anyways!" Snow Miser smiled at her. "It's been a long time at least.." Placing his arms behind his back, his eyes shifted from time to time to look at her hands. Pulling his vision away he denied himself to take her hand. Indi just smiled and blushed in reply, nodding and giving little 'mhms' as a response. "Is something wrong...?"

"No... Just enjoying the view. The sounds and the crisp cool feel of the air. My nose is turning a little red but, I don't care! The snow is so beautiful right now with how it shines from the lights and the moon.." Smiling warmly Indi sighed as her eyes traveled to the stars in the sky. Snow Miser gently took a hold of her hand finally. Her face turning all red she only peered at it out of the corner of her eyes. "Sometimes when the snow falls...? They remind me of little falling stars. I guess it's the way some of them twinkle in the sun. Even the icicles are really beautiful with how they hang from the trees! I love how you've twisted everyone and made them look differently." As they reached a little Gazebo that over looked the little pond in the park she laughed and made her way up. Holding his hand tightly she dragged him behind her. "Just LOOK at that view..! I know I don't have to tell you how beautiful it is... but.. The moon and the way it shimmers on the snow and ice.. It's...gorgeous."

"It is..." Snow Miser watching her lovingly he made his way up behind her. Gently he pulled away his hand then wrapped his arm around her, pulling her against him in a little cuddle. 

Having followed them Heat Miser had prepared to verbally confront his brother. That is until he witnessed his brother getting closer to the human. Softly he gasped as he hid behind a tree and watched. A look of concern formed on his face as he started to shake his head. How could his brother do such a thing..? The punishment for being with a mortal was removal of 'power'. It's something he feared for himself and something he feared for his brother. Despite that he couldn't stand him, he still cared about him. His stomach turned to knots as he swallowed. Indi too bashful to look up at Snow Miser just nuzzled her head on chest a little. Her heart now raced a mile a minute as she stared at the view a little longer. Then she noticed once again, just how oddly warm he felt. So warm...it felt nice. Paying attention she listened to his heart as it too raced. "...Indi.." He spoke softly to her as he ran a hand over her cheeks. "...your cheeks are cold.." Snow frowned as he raised her chin and looked from her eyes to her nose. "..and your nose is red."

"I'm fine, really.. I just want to keep looking at it a little more..." Indi pleaded as she looked around. That and she wanted to stay like this with him a little longer.

"You stay out here and you'll catch a Cold, other than Me..!" Winking, he wrapped his scarf around her face. Gently he then picked her up as he turned them both into snow and flurried off. Heat Miser very concerned about his brother decided to follow after him. Bursting into flames he tried to stay close behind. When they reached Indi's house Snow Miser reformed with her on the porch. 

"Well, here we are, Turtle Dove.." Setting Indi to her feet, Snow Miser looked at the icicle lights and other Christmas decor that decorated her house. They made the house look rather inviting . "Unfortunately, I.." He hadn't wanted to finish that sentence. "..I have to go. If I don't, Mother will wonder why I've been down here for so long. I'd actually be in a lot of trouble. Truth is, an elemental like myself is forbidden to be with a mortal. Though I.." It proved hard for him to speak. "..I do..care about you a lot. I ..have deep feelings.. t-that I can't describe. It makes me warm..."

"I don't care..." Indi interrupted as she looked at the ground. "I don't care!" Shaking her head she slowly and shyly looked up at him. Her eyes were starting to fill with tears. She had a hunch that besides being shy, this could have been one of the reasons. "I don't care if it's forbidden and I get in trouble..! I really like you, Snowy.. You're really fun, you're funny, you're exciting, you're caring, you're good looking..! You've got so much charisma and style. You know how to make me have a fun time, even if it's scary..! I care about you too but...p-please don't go, not yet!" Jumping up she wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him for a few moments.

Snow Miser's eyes widened as this surprised him! He hadn't expected her to do that at all! His heart pounded in his chest as a rush of fear went through him and then just like that, disappeared. Snow Miser found his arms quickly wrapped around her as he pulled her close and kissed her back. His gloved hand gently petting through her long hair. He closed his eyes to take it in. His heart happily pounding away in his chest as he continued to share this kiss with her. After a few moments he slowly he pulled back and smiled rather lovingly at her as she unlocked the door. As she walked in he hesitated for a moment before he followed.

"Your making a mistake, brother..." Heat Miser frowned and then erupted into flames. A few of the flames scattered over the ground. "Oh no!" Gasping he quickly tried to capture them all and absorb them. The last thing he wanted was to accidentally start a fire. Pulling himself together he sighed and wished he'd never witnessed this. Glaring at the ground he was angered at how his brother again only thought about himself. He then turned and left to return home.

"So...you have to get back home because you need to design a Snow Palace...?" Indi sat on the couch and peered over at him.

"Mmhm, and it's my job to make sure certain people bring their contribution of food! That way, everyone gets to eat the food they like! No one gets upset about there being only cold or hot food..! I just wish I knew of a design that'd impress Mother... ! I really...want that award. So tomorrow, I'll be gone... but I'll come back later!" Sighing Snow leaned his elbow on the couch and his head in his hand.

"Well, if you like, I'd be willing to help! I love fantasy's and stories with Castles in it..! I've seen a ton of those while reading to the children at school. I could definitely help with making it more creative! That is...if you want..." Indi smiled a little as she turned her attention to the TV.

"I would love that." Pulling her into his arms he cuddled her close and wrapped his jacket around her that he'd removed. The two of them proceeded to watch a few Christmas movies together that caused them to laugh and roll their eyes. Though during the last one Indi had fallen fast asleep with Snow holding her. Starting to laugh he looked at Indi to see if she liked it only to see her sleeping. Raising his eyebrows he smiled and kissed the top of her head. Gently he placed her onto the couch, resting her head on the pillow he'd used. Picking up his jacket he held it over his shoulder as he pulled the blanket up over her. Turning off the TV, he then placed an ice rose in her hand with a note. "Good night my little Snowflake..." Going to the door he opened it and went out. Closing it and locking it with an 'ice key' he turned into snow leaving for home.

Meanwhile, Heat Miser had arrived back home. When he walked in he started for his throne so he could sit and ponder as his Flames worked. However there in his chair flickered a beautiful fire sprite. Gasping Heat's eyes widened as he backed up. "W-What are you doing here?!" Staring he worried that he'd accidentally started a big fire without realizing it somewhere. If this were true and his mother found out, he'd be in BIG trouble. After all he'd been the one who left and kept his minions in charge. "Fire Sprites don't appear unless a disaster has happened..!"

Slinking down off of the throne she first floated toward him then sauntered as she approached closer. "Oh, aren't you a fiery one...?" Totally disregarding anything that he'd said to her she ran a finger under his chin. Giggling she walked around him as she looked him over.

"I'd like to think so...!" Gulping, Heat Miser blushed lightly as he looked up at her and watched her. Still he was wary about this fire sprite they were BAD news..! They were mischievous and unforgiving at times. Most of all they loved to watch things get burned. "N-Now wait a minute..! You never answered my question...!" Pointing at her he wavered a bit as she pouted at him.

"You're right, I'm sorry..." Picking him up she smiled slyly. "You're just so distracting. You're just so...CUTE..and pudgy.." Squeezing him to her she poked his belly. "I'm here because a fire was started in the Northville area. I was directed here by your Mother...? She said you'd know how to help me."

"W-well, I..uh... I'm going to have to since it was my fault apparently. Though I don't remember having started any big fire there.." Frowning Heat Miser scratched his head. His whole face had turned as red as his shirt and as bright as his hair. Suddenly he screamed as he jumped, then ran around trying to put out the flame she'd ignited on his butt. "NOW cut that out! I know I LIKE heat, but these are my good pants...!" Growling he stared at the charred seat of his pants. The fire sprite had roared into a vicious fit of laughter. "So you want to play do you!? What's your name?" Grinning Heat Miser fired up both of his hands. His Flame Minions having joined in.

"Sure, If you think you can keep up..." A mischievous smile formed as she readied herself for play. "You can call me, Zip.." With that the two started a game of cat and mouse. She literally zipped through his home and destroyed little things left and right. However, she'd been doing it all out of good fun. She'd wanted to tease him and impress him. The little pudgeball seemed adorable when he was angry. Snow Miser who yawned as he walked up to his ice home blinked at the commotion. His brother normally only yelled and screamed at him that way! Raising an eyebrow he just glared at the house and groaned as he watched his brothers roof light on fire.

"Must be redecorating.." Snow irritatedly tapped his foot on the ground. Great now there was both sound pollution and light pollution. Right around now he'd already had enough of his brother. Especially after he'd attempted to get him and Indi earlier. He really could've hurt her...not that his brother probably cared much.

Leaning out one of his windows Heat Miser pointed up at the fire on his roof. "THE ROOF! THE ROOF IS ON FIRE!" Flailing he shouted at his brother hoping that he'd help out.

"I CAN SEE THAT...! YOU'VE GOT NO RESPECT FOR YOUR NEIGHBORS!" Hrmpfing he turned and went inside of his home. Snow Miser slammed the door behind him and grumbled. He hoped the reflection of the fire wouldn't keep him awake. Not to mention he hoped that the flames itself wouldn't start melting his home.

"Augh... When you WANT his snow and ice he NEVER wants to do it...!" Groaning, Heat Miser slapped his forehead. Moving back inside he noticed that the Fire Sprite had ruined almost everything he'd worked hard to make. After having lost to Snow Miser all day, Having found out from North Wind what Mother had supposedly said, and witnessed what he shouldn't of, THIS was the last thing he needed. Finally from being so stressed out he collapsed and covered his face. Finally he cried as he thought about it all. It was just too much to handle for any person! Upon hearing the wailing Zip reformed and watched him. A part of her felt sorry for him in some way. She wondered if he was just being a baby about his home or if he in general was just upset.

"So what's wrong big guy? Don't tell me you're a sore loser. After all you asked me if I wanted to play..." Folding her arms she waited to hear his response.

"NO! It's not that, I can rebuild everything... but... still! I hadn't expected any of this today. I'm probably not going to get the element of the year award for sure now. I've worked so long...! 10 years, I've worked my way from the bottom of the list to the top. Every time My brother had always come in first..." Heat pointed to his brothers home. "Now today my other brother, The North Wind informed me, that Mother had already rumored to pick HIM for the award! So I tried my best to stop him at his little game of trying to out due me and regain his 'title' back. However, I failed miserably... then... then I caught him doing something that's extremely FORBIDDEN! He was getting romantically involved with a human! Being involved alone is bad news for us, but, since I know and have known, MOTHER is going to be just as upset at me too! I... It's just that I CAN'T squeal on my brother like that. Despite that he's big-headed and barely thinks of others... he's still..my brother. If he loses his powers, who will I fight with...? Who will I talk to...? Who will I bug and pester...? While I can't stand him, I still care about him. It'd be...BORING without him. I'm so upset he hasn't thought of US...or ME...in the least! Then you showed up and..." Before he could finish the Fire sprite had taken pity on him. Gently she hugged him and kissed his cheek.

"Don't you worry, Sunny. It'll turn out right..." An evil grin formed on Zip's face as she eyed down Snow Misers house. "Why don't you get some sleep, hm? Maybe you'll feel better in the morning...?"

"Yeah, you're right... Thank you for listening. I barely have anyone to listen to me.." Smiling lightly Heat Waddled off to his bed for the night. As soon as she'd watched him leave the fire sprite snickered as she made her way out.


	8. Feverish

The next morning Snow Miser woke up to a startle. His house had been melted! Not just into a pile of mush, but into the shape of Heat Miser's head. Making his way over to his brothers house Snow formed it out to look like himself. The entire place now covered in ice he knocked on his brothers door. Tiredly Heat Miser opened it up. He'd only just gotten out of bed himself. His night hat was still even on. "You...? What do YOU want...?" Folding his arms Heat Miser grumped at his brother.

"Oh I just wanted to inform you that I'd gotten a HEAD start on my designing today..! HAHA!" Grinning, Snow Miser pointed to Heat Miser's home.

Stepping outside in a hurry Heat Miser looked up and screamed. "WHAT DID YOU DO TO MY BEAUTIFUL HOME?! What is THIS for...?!" Growling he jabbed his brother. "What did I do to you?!" Throwing his hands up in the air, he became rather frustrated.

"You know EXACTLY what you did, Brother!" Snow Miser hissed as he pointed to his home that was now formed like Heat's head. "I was merely returning the favor.." Narrowing his eyes he waited for his brother to respond.

Gasping at the sight of it Heat Miser ran toward it a little. "Oh No! Oh... I... I didn't do that! You've got it all wrong. It wasn't me, I swear!" Heat Miser frowned as he waved his hands and shook his head.

"OH, REALLY? Who was it then? Because, it has YOU ALL OVER IT!" Placing his hands on his hips Snow again waited to hear his brother out. Still he readied a nice ice bolt just in case.

"I know this LOOKS bad but, I...I didn't... Y'see, there's this FIRE Sprite that appeared last night! It's why I screamed so badly last night! I was asking you for your HELP with her. She's a very active one.. Apparently I started a fire somewhere and I...think I know where, but I tried to stop it! So Mother put me in charge of her. I told her how much you ...bothered me with your stupidity yesterday, and, she must've taken it out on your home." Heat Miser pointed and frowned as he covered his face. "I didn't mean for...that to happen.."

"A...FIRE SPRITE?! Oh good icicles, tell me you're JOKING!" Snow Miser stared at his brother until Zip appeared at the door.

"Oh, he's not joking my little puddle of slush.." Grinning, Zip worked her way to Heat Miser and hugged onto him. "I'm sorry you're so displeased, Sunny.. I was ONLY trying to make you happy. You seemed so sad last night and betrayed by what Frosty here pulled..." Glaring lightly at Snow Miser she waited for him to take the bait.

"Frosty?! Wrong legend!" Sticking out his tongue Snow looked at Heat Miser."What is she talking about..?!"

Heat Miser sighed as he pulled his hat off of his head and played with it. "First the fact that you're trying to put a bad spin on my name. JUST to regain your title...and then...You and your jeopardizing BOTH OF our titles in general. Both of OUR POWERS dear brother.. Remember, I'm the one who helped you keep the secret about your visits to see that mortal! MA, still found out some how! NOW, you're doing the most forbidden...you...you've..started a romantic relationship ...with her! The...MORTAL!" He whispered the best that he could to his brother and growled. "SINCE IIIIIIII'M the one who HELPED you to do this in the first place, WHO ELSE do you think...is going to go DOWN WITH YOU!? BROTHER DEAR?!" Enraged by his brother, Heat Miser flared up.

"I...I..." Looking to the side he hadn't thought about his brother really."I'm sorry, Bro. I hadn't thought...about...that. Augh, OKAY, So I did! It's just, I can't help it! There's something special about her..." Snow Miser removed the snow and ice that covered his brother's house. "You really can't help who you fall in love with." Looking between Heat Miser and the Fire Sprite. "Even one's you're supposed to SNUFF OUT...? Hmn...?" A cool collected smile formed on Snow's face as he looked from him to her.

"U-Uh...Well I uh..." Shifting his eyes Heat Miser looked at Zip. It was true he was supposed to put her out. Though he just COULDN'T do it. "I-it's not that I'm in love... more like she's... very fun to have around. I like her as a close friend... She listens to me! Which is more than I can say for HALF of my own family."

"Mmhm, either way what you're doing is WRONG!" Grinning, Snow Miser knew he now had the upper hand. "So, why don't we call ourselves even..? I don't tell Mother about your girlfriend...and you don't tell her about MINE...? Deal...?" Holding out his hand to shake on a truce he waited.

"D-DEAL!" Grabbing his hand Heat Miser decided to shake on it. That way he managed to keep his newly found friend, and his brother would manage to get to spend time with the mortal.

"...and please try to keep that Fire Sprite away from MY home! I've already got enough to try and re-design before the award ceremony!" Throwing his arms up into the air Snow Miser smiled a bit.

"...Yeah, well, you just be careful of that human. Their minds change at the drop of a flake!" Heat Miser concerned for his brother watched as he left. Snow knew what his brother meant but he hadn't feared that sort of thing with Indi. She was special to him. There was this indescribable feeling when he was around her. Little did either Miser know that the two of them had been spied on. Two of the North Wind's minions snickered evilly as they flew off.

When Snow Miser finally made it back to Indi's house he knocked on the door softly. "I'm back my little Popsicle!" Waiting nicely he dusted himself off and straightened out his jacket. When the door opened he found himself being hugged onto tightly. "AACCK!" Being pulled inside Snow Miser dropped his cane of which he was holding. Upon it hitting the porch it disappeared almost into thin air. Inside he was greeted by a very very warm welcome. "Well, it's nice to see you up so early..! You ready to help out?" Giving her a quick kiss on her forehead Snow Miser's eyes widened. "Whoa-ho! HOLD IT!" Placing a finger to Indi's forehead he watched as his finger steamed. "You, have, a FEVER!"

"But, Snowy I'm fine really..! It's just a..." Indi tried to speak but before she could Snow Miser had already started to over react. He grabbed a bucket of cold water and half turned it to slush with a cloth in it.

"No, no and NO! YOU on the couch right now!" Pointing at it Snow Miser eyed her down. "A fever is a fever! If you don't take good care of it..it'll go outta control and...I won't be able to ask you." Frowning Snow Miser tapped his chin as he watched Indi sit on the couch.

"Ask me what...?" Indi's smile widened when he mentioned that. "What? Tell me! C'mon, Snowwwyyy..!" Tugging on his arm she begged him. Looking down at her face he could see the toll from her cold, though he smiled as she begged. How could he say no?

"Ohhh, alright. I know it's taboo to have a human for girlfriend and, I know Mom is gonna kill me when she finds out! Heh, and this would be taking very big unnecessary chances but..." Biting his lower lip he clasped her hand tightly into his. "Would you be my date for the award ceremony...? W-we're all supposed to have one...and I...I'd love to have you there."

"I'd LOVE TO! But...I don't look like an elemental..." Pouting Indi sighed and leaned on her arm.

"WELL, Uh, Hmn, I could help out with that...! I'll find someone to help. For now I'll fetch my minions and take care of that fever!" Snow started to call on them.

"But you CAN'T! Don't you have to construct your...uh..Ice..Palace...?" Tilting her head, Indi was confused.

"HNG!" Snow Miser's eyes widened as he looked at her. "Y-yes...but I..." Seeing her giving HIM the stern look now he groaned. "Fine. But, I'll fetch my brother! It's HIS FAULT for making you sick! He'll take good care of you!" Smiling he disappeared into a snow-swirl.

"No no no, NO! I don't think that's such a good IDE-...Uhhh...Ohhh...this is going to be a LONG day!" Sighing heavily Indi smirked as she made herself comfortable on the couch. Gently she touched the bucket of ice water he'd left her and started to use it.

Appearing back in front of Heat Miser, Snow tapped his foot on the ground. "Alright, YOU! THIS TIME, YOU'VE gone...TOO FAR!" Poking his brother in the chest he eyed him down. "THANKS to YOUR antics yesterday, Indi is sick!"

"MY ANTICS?! YOU'RE the one who pulled the loop-di-loops!" Heat Miser frowned as he pointed that out.

"BUT YOUR the ones who CAUSED me to do them! WHAT? Should I of let her catch on fire MORE? Hmnnn?" Snow Miser again narrowed his eyes.

"That wouldn't have been so bad..." Grinning evilly, Heat Miser chuckled at the thought of his problem going away. "...augh, FINE! What do you want...ME to do about it..." Pouting he looked from Zip to him.

"Since I have to take care of building the ceremony castle... YOU'RE going to be the one to take care of her! You and your minions... I need MINE to help me do my work!" Snow Miser explained as his hands once again found themselves on his hips.

"BUT, then all work would stop HERE! I NEED my Minions to keep up...Hmn... Fine, I'll send my Minions! But I need to stay here! I need to keep up the progress that I'm going to lose. Sorry, Zip...Looks like that BBQ is going to be held off for a little." Heat Miser called on his minions and dispatched them to Indi. Zip glared at Snow Miser the entire time. Oh that guy made her boil! He just ruined her whole set of plans that she'd made for Heat and her. Shaking her fist at him as he disappeared she also watched Heat Miser as he wandered off to work. Becoming rather enraged by the fact she'd be left for bored Zip disappeared in a fury.

Arriving at the location where he needed to build his castle at, Snow Miser inhaled deeply as he enjoyed the thought. "Soon a beautiful castle full of ice and snow will be standing here boys..! It'll shimmer and shine in the moonlight. It's going to be the best one yet!" Placing his hands on his hips he studied the area as he figured out some structure first. Once he'd figured one out he and his minions quickly started construction on the building. "Alright, now to put in a stair case right th-.." Pausing in mid sentence both Snow Miser and his minions were shocked to find that the castle had melted. His first thought was of his brother and him doing this for payback. Shaking it off he tried to keep his cool as he looked to his minions. "HAH, The jokes on him. I didn't really like it anyways. Yes, I can see it now.. this next one will be even better!" Aiming they once again started building up the castle. It seemed like every time they would finish one thing, another part that they'd just finished would be melted!

Time after time Snow Miser grew more and more irritated with it. Still he tried to remain focused and keep a positive outlook on this. After all whatever was melted he placed something better there. Even so the job had started to become tedious at this point. "I swear if this melts down one more time...I'm going to..." His fists bunched up he started to shake a little. Again taking a deep breath he exhaled and started over again. After 3 more attempts he finally had become fed up with everything. "THAT'S IT! Boys, keep going... I'm going to find out what my brother is up to. I've had enough of this game.." Spinning around Snow Miser disappeared into a burst of snow.

Meanwhile back at Indi's home the poor girl watched as the Flames stumbled into her house through the fire place. "Oh...this can't be good..." Blinking she watched as they grabbed the bucket of ice water and dumped it into the sink. "H-hey! What are you doing...? Snowy made that for me...! I ..." But before she could finish the minions laid her back down on the couch. They piled blanket upon blanket on top of her. "UH...guys...! Guys... H-Hey now, hold on a minute..." She tried to stop them though she was way too weak. Soon enough she found herself buried under a pile of about 10 blankets. "I think that's enough!" Grinning nervously Indi nodded at the little workers. Watching them as they marched around her home she worried about things. "Guys... I'm really starting to feel hot here... I'm.. supposed to cool down.. and I'm.. really warming up." Huffing she watched as they brought out the bucket. "Oh... you refilled it? That's nice!" Smiling she waited for the washrag to be placed on her forehead. The second it was placed she started to sigh, "That feels so nice and ...h-hot...Hot... HOT! HOT! AH-HAAAAH! TOO HOT! TOO HOT! TOO HOT!"

Indi's eyes widened as she squirmed and moved under the blanket trying to get the scolding cloth off of her head. "OW OW OW OW OW!" Cringing she felt herself start to sweat and feel light headed. "Nnngh... N-need...water...! Something to drink..." Looking at them weakly she coughed. The Flames looked at each other and discussed something before a group of them wandered into the kitchen. When they returned they smiled and lifted a cup to her mouth so she could drink. " Oh... thank you...!" Sniffling she quickly took a big swig of it expecting cold. Upon swallowing her eyes swelled up with tears as the left one twitched. "H-HHNNNGGH... MMMMM.. HOOOOOOOOOOTTTTTTTTTT! AAAAAAAAHHH!" Jumping up to her feet she ran around trying to find something to cool off her tongue with. Giving chase the Flames ushered her back to the couch as they urged her to give it time to work. No sooner had she reached the couch did she faint. Exchanging glances the Flames smiled at one another and started to get to work again.


	9. Sabotage

Snow Miser appeared next to his brother and glared at him for a moment. When he noticed his brother was hard at work trying to make sure things didn't go wrong he blinked. Well, if this was the situation his brother couldn't have been the one to of caused the meltdown at the castle location. "Can I help you brother?! You're kind of in the way!" Heat grumbled as he charged past him and pulled some levers and loaded the steamer.

"...Hmn, do you know where your little fire sprite is...?" Snow Miser tapped his chin as he pondered if it had been her instead.

"Not really, I'm too busy to pay attention to where she's at right now! Though I wish I knew where and what she was doing..." Pouting, Heat continued his mad-spree of trying to get everything fixed and organized. "It'd be nice to have someone to talk to around here. Since my minions are gone and she left it's been too quiet. It's gotten ...lonely..." Frowning slightly he glanced at his brother. "Why?"

"Well, for some reason or another...my Ice Castle keeps melting! Every-time I rebuild it the thing MELTS AGAIN! Now at first I didn't mind. It allowed me to try and work out the kinks of my design but still..! After awhile it just turned down right irritating. You and I both know I have a deadline to meet." Frowning he folded his arms over his chest and strummed his fingers. Heat Miser stared at him for a moment before he continued his work. With furrowed eyebrows he wondered if Zip really had tried to sabotage Snow's castle. If that was the case he'd need to talk to her.

"I...can't tell you if it's her or not. Though I'll be sure to talk to her if I see her..." Heat Miser explained to Snow Miser just before his brother nodded and disappeared after saying thanks.

When Snow Miser returned he focused on the project and started over again. From time to time his mind wandered off in thought about Indi and how she was doing. He worried on whether or not she was doing alright. There were several times where he almost visited her. However every time he started to his poor castle was melted again. "THAT'S IT! Alright, Flakes assemble! "

"Mind if I join as well...?" Heat Miser's voice sounded out from behind them.

Snow Miser's eyes widened at his brother. "But I thought you needed to watch over the heat channeling...?" Facing his brother he raised his eyebrows.

"Well, I figured you needed my help more right now. Besides, don't you know the old saying? Sometimes you've gotta fight fire with fire!" Grinning, Heat Miser flared up a pair of fireballs in his hands. Just happy to have his brother along for the help Snow Miser took off with a few of his minions to try and find the culprit. Heat Miser also took off with a few of the Flakes to find them as well. Quietly Snow Miser snuck around one side of the melted castle. Both him and his minions looked at and through some of the trees and bushes. They climbed through the brush and back out again. On the other side of the castle Heat Miser also checked the bushes and the trees with the help of Snowy's minions. Suddenly a fireball blazed past Snow Miser. Gasping from surprise he jumped back startled.

"Whoa! Who's there?!" Not even waiting to find out Snow Miser turned around and launched a bolt upon seeing some flame colored hair. To his surprise it appeared to have missed. "Hmn..." Quickly running over to look he frowned when no one was there except for a now frozen snow minion. "Oops...s-sorry..!" Grinning nervously he shrugged slightly. "Well... let's get back to looking then.." Unfreezing his minion again he started up his search. After a few minutes of searching yet ANOTHER fireball whizzed past him. Gasping out he stumbled back as another nearly nailed him. Narrowing his eyes Snowy was tired of playing this game. Going all out this time Snow Miser threw his snow bolts at the moving target. It'd pop up here and there confusing him. "Hold still you..!" The teasing continued until it lead Snow Miser's aim to Heat Miser. When he tossed the last bolt it nailed poor Heat Miser causing him to jump up as he grabbed his butt. "OOPS! S-Sorry Brother... I thought...you were..! I mean... the target moved... eheh.." Grinning sheepishly he rubbed the back of his head.

"Well be more CAREFUL next time! Sheesh, Oh look at that..." Grumbling Heat Miser looked at his hair as he melted the snow off of it and his butt. "YUCK, Now I'm all wet...! Fine... YOU check over here and I'll check over there! If someone's playing games then It'd be best if I played back!" Chuckling Heat Miser then took over the area where Snow Miser had looked. "Alright let's see..." Tapping his chin he looked around the areas that his brother had reported being attacked. In no time he too was also under fire from the unknown person. "HAH, Trying to use MY OWN ELEMENT against ME?! You've got some guts...!" Flaring up his hands he then tossed the fireballs toward the figure. Again the target decided to move around confusing poor Heat Miser. " HOLD STILL!" Not even caring about setting the brush on fire at this point Heat Miser just wanted to hit the culprit. The next thing he knew he'd flamed poor Snow Miser on his arm. "OOPS...! S-sorry... I..."

"What's the meaning of this?!" Snow Miser flailed around trying to put it out. "What are trying to do!? HELP the person!?" Snorting he glared at Heat Miser. "Unless it WAS you the whole time!" Though he hadn't really believed it he'd been irritated enough as it were about everything that'd happened up to this point. His brother seemed to mess things up more than help out. Throwing a bolt at his brother he gritted his teeth.

"W-What?! Oh...now YOU want to tangle too now HUH?!" Launching a fireball at Snow Miser the brothers once again started their waring. Neither had payed very much attention as the trees and brush burned around them. By the time that the person who'd caused the trouble was gone, Mother Nature had arrived. With her arms folded over her chest she glared at the boys. The two who'd been laying defeated on the ground by one another quickly stood up.

"H-Hello...Mother..." Both swallowed and hung their heads as they looked at her. Swallowing hard they expected an earful and an earful they received.

Later when everything had been said and done Snow Miser arrived back at Indi's home. In his hand he held actual flower's he'd picked from his Mother's garden. "...These should make her smile.." Entering in he smiled and called out. "Indi, I'm back...! I'm sorry that it took so long but well.. My brother and I got into a fight and let's just say I ended up hot under the collar from silly things...!"

"You're not the only one..." Indi's voice unamusedly sounded out.

"Hmn?" Blinking Snow Miser looked up and gasped at the sight in front of him. The Flames had tied her up and hung her upside down over a heating system. Not only that but as he looked around he noticed the tree's ornaments had been replaced with red ones! They all had fireballs and flame work on them. Gasping he raced over to Indi and untied her setting her down. "YOU FLAMING CHEESE BRAINS GET OUT OF HERE, NOW!" Pointing at the door Snow Miser glared at the runts as they jumped into the fire place instead. "A...are you okay...?"

"Even though I'm better, I've BEEN better..." Glaring at him Indi tapped her foot on the ground. "The next time I try to tell you something is a bad idea, Listen k?"

Smiling sweetly Snow Miser offered her up the flowers he'd picked for her. "Mom's flowers are the prettiest I've ever seen. These reminded me of you while I was there so.."

"You picked them for me?" Indi's face lit up as she happily accepted the flowers and hugged them. "Oh they're GREAT! Mmmm...and they smell so sweet too... Thank you." Grabbing a vase out she filled it up with water then placed the flowers inside. "There... Now if only my tree..." Frowning she sighed as she stared at it.

"You're welcome. I ... I could help out with it! Are the ornaments okay...?" Looking over to see that most were used for target practice he winced. "Uh... heh, Alright then...! Time for some magic..!" Cracking his knuckles Snow Miser waved his hands over the shards of glass. Turning them into ice and snow he borrowed some food coloring to turn some of them blue. Happily he placed the newly made ornaments onto the tree and hummed.

"N-not that I'm not grateful, Snowy, but won't those melt?" Raising an eyebrow Indi watched him as he decorated the tree.

"Nope! I have only so much 'Magic' I can use a day...within a time period but...I haven't really used much of it today. Since I wasn't able to construct the castle. So I'm using it on these for you. Since it is my fault they were ruined in a way.." Gazing at her, Snow Miser smiled as he continued his work. Blushing Indi slowly hugged him tightly from behind. Gently nuzzling her cheek into his back she closed her eyes as a way to show her gratitude. Blushing softly Snow Miser smiled to himself as he placed a free hand on one of hers. "Anything else you'd need, Sugar Plum...?" Putting the last touches on it he turned around in her arms, hugging her close to him now.

"After a HOT day like today...? Mint chocolate chip ice cream sounds amazing... But I -" Before she could finish he'd disappeared. "...and he's gone again..." Sitting on the couch she giggled and stared at her tree. When he reappeared he held a bowl of it in his hands.

"One order up...!" Scooting in he held the bowl up as he formed an ice spoon in his hand. Indi grabbed up the spoon it had come with and started to dig in. The two of them laughed as they playfully fought with their spoons over who would get the parts that had the most chocolate chips.

"So, you couldn't make your castle today huh...?" Frowning, Indi was rather sad to hear that. That meant one more day that she couldn't spend with him.

"No, I couldn't... but, that just means, YOU can! Now that you're better and all...! Whatta ya say...?" Smiling widely he gazed into her eyes.

"YAAAAAAAY!" Bouncing on the couch Indi hugged onto him tightly and laughed. "Yes, yes, and yes! Though...how will I fit in...?" Whimpering she frowned.

"Mh, I...could stay the night and help you out...! To get you ready for it.. I know just the right look for you..!" Snow Miser hugged her back tightly and kissed her. When they finished up with the ice cream the two of them put out the fire in the fire place. From there they both readied themselves for bed. Snowy removed his jacket and shoes. Indi came out of the bathroom soon after wearing her full-bodied snow PJ's like before. Cuddling close to him she rested her head on his chest and held both him and a plush toy close with her right arm. Watching her as she fell asleep Snow Miser soon followed after.

Upon waking up Indi yawned and nuzzled her head into the pillow. Wait her pillow..? Blinking she opened her eyes fully and shot straight up. "Snowy?" Looking at her bedroom door that'd been opened she stared waiting for an answer.

"Boo." Snow Miser's voice chimed from behind her as he tapped her shoulder. Turning around Indi smiled at the sight of him. Gently he smiled back and offered her a plate with a pancake on it. "Ta-Da! I had my minions make it up for you..! It's still warm.." Winking he tilted the fork to her.

"Oh.. Thank you!" Turning a deep red she happily started to eat what she'd been given. Still she wished he would've stayed there until she'd woken up. This was such a nice treat though!

"When you're finished I'll have my Minions help get you ready! I've already picked out some clothing for you.. I thought it'd bring out your eyes.." Snowy smiled softly.

Looking at the things layed out in front of her she blushed deeply. "So all of this is for me? This whole outfit?" Biting her lower lip she looked from them to him.

"Yes! I hope you like them... I kept in mind that it'd be cold to a human girl like yourself." Sighing happily Snow Miser watched her set aside the food and climb out of bed. "I wanted to make sure you didn't get sick again.."

"Okay, let me get changed first...and then we'll have the little minions come in and help!" Grabbing up the clothes Indi carried them into the bathroom to get dressed. Putting on the get up she made sure everything was situated just right. Hiding behind the door she called for the minions to enter. Snowy tried to take a peek only to find the door slammed in his face. Gently he rubbed his nose and mumbled. When she was finished she opened the door and stepped out. "W-well...? What do you think...?" Blushing she turned around and posed. Snow Miser's eyes widened as he looked her over from head to toe.

"You...look...AMAZING...!" His face lit up like a Christmas tree as he moved over and wrapped his arms around her." I knew you'd look...fantastic in that... " Snow Miser's heart started to race once again as he gazed to her eyes.

"Oh stop it, you..! Shouldn't we be going...? Hehehe! I'm REALLY excited to get to see where you live!" Jumping up and down Indi giggled and hugged onto his arm. That was right! She'd never seen where he lived before..! Not that his house was in working condition mind you...but he could fix that!

"Of course...right... this way, m'lady...!" And with that Snow Miser whisked her away to the castle site.


	10. Reflecting

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WRITERS NOTE: Hello! I want to thank each and every one of you for all of your amazing and wonderful comments and support! I am so blown away by all of the positive feedback I've gotten over the last 10 years from all of you! Yes, it's been 10 years since I've last written a chapter. Not once did any of your comments or feedback go ignored! I just simply had a very long and difficult writers block when it came to this story. Today I was able to finally dish out another chapter for all of you! I hope that you'll enjoy it as the mystery continues to unfold. Thank you so much for being fans of my writing and staying with me this whole time! Thank you for sticking with following both Indi and this story! Enjoy. .)

Snow Miser lands outside the ruins of the ice castle he was trying to create and smiles warmly at Indi whom he arrives with. "Well, what do you think...? I know, it's currently a pile of rubble but, the base is still there!" He grins nervously as he motions toward it. Indi takes a moment to glance around at the entire scenery before she looks at the rubble.

"Everything here is beautiful..! So you and the other elements live here...?" Her blue eyes shifting to meet his. "You're so lucky to get to be here. The fact that you can have every element, every season, right next to each other, is so cool!" Indi's smile widens as she then looks over at the crumbled ice castle, her expression changing into a cringe at the sight. "Oof. Well, uhm, it's a perfect spot to build it for sure, but why don't we work on building that castle? Hard to tell anything about it's structure from just the rubble."

"Heh, honest as usual. I have the snow prints with my flakes! I'll just have them bring it over and see what you think." Snow uses his fingers to whistle his minions over. In a flurry they make their way over to their master. One of the flakes holds out the blue prints. "Thank you!" Snow Miser smiles smugly as he takes the blue prints and opens them up, showing the over all design to Indi. "Here it is..! Now what do you think?"

Indi's eyes widen as she looks over the design and layout. It was really well thought out! There were a few design flaws that could use some fixing but otherwise, it was pretty perfect. "This looks amazing, Snowy! Your over all structure is really impressive. May I make a few suggestions though..?" Curiously she tilts her head to look at him.

"Why, thank you!" He beams with pride for a few moments before she asks to make a few suggestions. "Oh, uhm sure! Why not?" Snow Miser summons a pen and hands it to her. "I'd love to see your ideas too..! This is why I brought you after all." Placing his arms behind his back he watches her.

"So what if we..." Sticking out her tongue in a thinking expression, she takes the pen and starts gently making changes to the over all design. "...and we could..." It takes a few moments before she pulls back and grins. "There! What do you think..? I figured this would make for a beautiful ball room area, this could be where Mother Nature could watch over everything, the banquet could go there, a Christmas tree or two here and here, lights all through here, and ice sculptures! Maybe including your family to just get some bonus points." Indi grins an winks.

"..It's.. PERFECT! I...never would've thought of that! Hah, I knew we'd make a great team." Snow Miser smiles warmly at her again and gives a gently wink back. "Now, while I build this maybe I could have your help with standing guard? Someone is trying to sabotage my ice palace. Someone using fire! We think it's a fire sprite but we're not certain. I'd like to get to the bottom of it so they won't be able to ruin our plans any further! This needs to be done in a few days."

"Of course! I'll be sure to find out whose behind this and make sure they don't wreck it again! Also, maybe your minions can gather some stone or have Heat Miser help with making some so we can use it as a base. That way even if it melts down, structurally they can't destroy it!"

"Huh, hadn't thought of that either.." Placing a hand to his chin looking thoughtful, Snow Miser smiles again afterward. "I'll get right on that! I'll send for the hot head now." Looking at his Flakes he nods at them, nodding back the minions take off.

A little while later Heat Miser appears with some of his Ember minions. " You summoned me, oh brother of mine..?" He raises an eyebrow, his arms folding a little defensively as he looks him over.

"Ah, just the brother I wanted to see! I need your help with building the castle." Snow motions toward it and offers a small smile. He wasn't really sure if his brother would be so willing to help out but, he'd hoped for it at least. Even if it would be to just give himself a higher chance of getting that award.

"...Wait, you want, MY, help again..? Is this some sort of trick?!" Heat grumbles and waves a hand irritatedly.

"Not at all, Indi here, had the idea to invite you. She thinks that we should fortify the wall by using some of your stone that you make! That way if someone tries to melt down my ice again, the over all structure should hold." Snow grins as he holds up the new blue prints.

"Ohh, that is a good idea! Also, it falls into us working toge-...wait, Indi is here?!" Heat quickly glances around. "Are you crazy brother?! You actually brought the mortal HERE?" He grabs at his own fiery hair and pulls a little out of stress. "I can't believe yo-"

"Shhhh! Geeze, keep it down, man! Don't lose your cool. If Mother see you freaking out she'll come down here and then we'll really be in a hot mess!" Snow Miser whispers at him. "Yes, I brought her. She is going to be my date after all! I know Mother will want to meet her anyways. Just try to act cool." He nervously bites his lower lip. "Will you help me out or not..?"

"Hnnhh, FINE!" Heat begrudgingly agrees and shakes his head in irritation. "I don't like this one bit with her though but, I ...understand." He calms down and sighs. "Where is she anyways?" He raises an eyebrow and looks around curiously.

"She's currently keeping watch for whoever it was that was trying to destroy the Ice Castle." Snow Miser explains as he looks over his shoulder to watch her for a moment. "Anyways, shall we get to work brother?" Smirking he teases, "...or did you lose your spark for it again?"

"Hah, I'll show you losing sparks!" Heat smirks and gets to work on building the stones for the castle. He still didn't fully approve of Indi already being there but, Snow Miser did need the extra help with keeping a watchful eye on who was trying to set them up. Someone was definitely out to ruin their brotherhood and the castle for sure. Who though..? Who would be so vile? It couldn't have been North could it? Heat Miser ponders to himself as he gets enough stone for the bottom half of the building done. "Whew..I need a small break..!" Heat sits down to try and recharge, having used a lot of energy there.

"No problem, Bro, you just sit and chill out for awhile. I'll work on my part for now..!" Snow smiles and gets to work on it.

Meanwhile, Indi continues her rounds around the backside of the ice castle. She walks from one side to the other, checking in the bushes or trees every now and then. It was pretty quiet to be honest. She hadn't really heard or seen anything the entire time she was there. For now she just enjoys the peace and quiet, the sound of nature around hearing all of its forms.

The only disturbance came from Heat and Snow bickering around the front side of the castle. Softly she giggles to herself as she listens to the two of them. "I bet they don't even realize how much they both really care about each other. They both seem so stubborn about showing their true feelings. It's really cute to see two brothers that close." Indi thinks out loud to herself.

It was then that the girls attention was drawn toward some movement and a sound from her left. "Hello..? Who's there?" Indi's eyes narrow as she cautiously steps forward. Watching the other bolt she quickly follows suite. "HEY! Hold up!" She cries out, turning to shout back at the misers, "I found someone! This way!" Unfortunately for her, the two hadn't heard her cry to them. They were too busy in their own discussions. Having not noticed the two weren't following, she stayed on the trail of the person. "Where are you!? Show yourself!"

Indi pauses in the middle of a clearing, looking around to see if she can spot them. The girls chest heaves as she tries to catch her breath. Whoever they were, they were definitely fast. She sighs as she realizes they most likely got away. "Probably for the better anyways, since I can't exactly fight them.."

Gently she kneels down to take a drink of water from a fresh clean pond she stumbled across while running. Cupping her hands she takes a small drink before squeaking out in surprise at the reflection she sees in the water. "Wh-wha? Who? I..is that me..?" Touching her cheek the reflection does as well, confirming that whoever she is seeing in the water is at least mimicking her.

"Wh-who are you...?" She stares dumbfounded at the girl. The reflection appeared to have blue eyes, orange, blonde and white hair. She was wearing clothes colored in browns, orange, golds and some greens. It was curious to say the least.

"So you don't remember me? That's so sad. You can feel it though, can't you..? A sense of familiarity? Deep down you know me..." The reflection finally replies to her.

"Ah!" Indi jumps back a little, falling onto her butt as she stares at the pond she had just heard the reflection from. "I .." She pauses a moment out of shock before continuing. "Yes, I ..I do but- .." When she sits back up to look into the water, the girl has vanished! Indi blinks a little in confusion. "Where did she go..? Hello? Orange girl?" She calls out but with no luck.

It takes her a few moments but she makes her way back toward the ice castle and the boys. How peculiar, she thought. Maybe the Misers would know who the girl was?

From the shadows two sets of eyes watch as she heads off. Both of them sighing in relief to see her give up the chase. "Whew, that was close, too close. Come, let's get back to the plan!" The mysterious voice urges the side kick to follow as they both disappear for now.


	11. Mysterious Inari

By the time Indi returns to the Castle it's more built than it had been before she left. It was quite the beautiful sight to behold! The Ice Palace was starting to look amazing at this point. The north and west walls were completed and the two seemed to be working on finishing up the south wall at that exact moment. 

"Ah, Indi, there you are!" Snow Miser smiles warmly at her, quickly making his way over to her when he sees her. "I was starting to get worried, Sugar Plum. I thought something might've happened!"

"It's funny that you say that because, something did happen, actually.." Indi glances off to where she came from. "There was thi-.."

"WHAT!? What happened!? Are you okay?" Snow goes into a slight panic as he starts checking her over, looking for any sort of blood or injury. "Who did it..!?"

"Do you need me to roast 'em?" Heat joins in as he pauses from the work he was so focused on. Although he was nervous about his brothers relationship with her, he still cared enough about the girls well being. She didn't seem like a bad human. Also, if their mother found out she was a human through that, it could be very dangerous. 

"Whoa! Haha, slow down you two, I'm fine! Thank you for worrying about me though." Indi gives a soft smile. "What happened was there was this person standing over there, hiding in the bushes. So I followed them! I was right on their tail and then poof they disappeared right? Then I went to get a drink from this pond and there was a strange girl with orange hair in it talking to me..." 

"A girl with orange hair..?" Snow Miser raises an eyebrow and glances at Heat. "I know someone with that description.."

"Don't jump to conclusions yet, Snowball! What were her other features?" Heat motions to Indi to continue. 

"Well, she had blue yes like me and a brown and green outfit, some gold and white hair too.. She asked me if I knew her or if this seemed familiar. I ...I can honestly say I do know her! I just..don't know her name..and everything does seem familiar here in some way. I got spooked by her talking and when I looked in the water, she was gone.." Indi frowns.

Both Heat Miser and Snow Miser are staring at her, wide-eyed and dumbfounded at this point. They definitely knew who the girl was but could it be true..? They hadn't seen her in years, many, many years at that. "It...can't be! Can it..?"

"We know her.." Heat Miser looks at Snow Miser to see his reaction. 

"Her name is Inari she was the Harvest Maiden. It was her job to bring fall and harvests to the world. She painted the colors of the leaves, brought out fall crops and harvests while destroying and preserving life for the next season, Winter. She had a bunch of powers! But.." Snow stops a moment to try and catch his emotions.

"She never got the chance. We were all playing as kids and practicing our powers. Showing off more so I guess.." Heat explains, " We were just being kids. Our brother, North Wind, joined in and we all got a bit too carried away and wild. A wind storm came out of nowhere and Inari was swept away.."

"We could never find her no matter how hard we tried. All of us elementals pitched in! She was just....gone, but, if you've seen her around, that means she's still alive! I wonder why she hasn't shown herself to any of us..?" Snow Miser looks slightly hurt as he thinks about it, glancing back at Heat. 

"We'll have to inform Mother and the others as soon as possible. This is big news! Then we can all keep an eye out for her." Heat Miser grins really big as he thinks about it. "Just imagine if we do find her? That would be a huge nod in our favor towards that award!" 

"Wow, so there's a Harvest Maiden named Inari? Huh, that name does sound familiar come to think of it. I swear I heard it when I was just a kid! My mom used to tell me a bunch of stories about the elementals, my father too. It's so cool to hear about another one! I don't remember hearing my mom talk too much about her. Just a little bit and now I can see why!" She smiles warmly at them. "If I can do anything to help, I'd be very happy to!"

"Thanks, we'd appreciate it!" Snow gives a smile at her. "For now we should focus on finishing up this Ice Palace. I'm sorry if it's a bit boring since you can't help out with any of your powers...but you are helping out a lot by guarding it!"

Heat Miser gasps a moment as a thought dawns on him, "Now I know she can't use fire power, but, do you think the sabotager could've been Inari?" He looks at Snow.

"What?! Inari wouldn't do that! ...Would she..?" Snow Miser had to think about it for a moment.

"If she thinks we're the ones to blame for what might've happened to her, she just might!" Heat tries to reason with his brother the both giving a nod in agreement. This was going to be tricky now if that were the case. 

"If only there were a way to catch her in the act, then we'd know for sure!" Heat slams a fist into his other hand. 

"True, hmn, do you think she'll show up to crash the Ceremony..? We would be able to catch her then for sure!" Snow looks between the two as he plots. 

"Oh definitely! If she's a woman scorned, she is definitely going to show up and crash your party! I mean, she's trying to destroy it already. If this doesn't work, she's doing an inside job! As a lady myself I can tell you that when some of us get mad, we plot revenge. If one thing doesn't work out for us, we will hit you where it hurts. Since you are both trying to get this award at this ceremony, seems to be that'd be a perfect time to try and crash it! It'd make you both look like horrible fools in front of everyone. All of the elements would see, she could easily try and ruin your reputations and chances at the award. Not to mention if she tries to pull any other things out of her hat that Mother Nature would listen to and believe, you guys could end up punished. I'm not really sure how that works up here with your Mom, but let me tell you, I tried to avoid getting in trouble with my mother at all costs. I couldn't imagine the wrath of Mother Nature and to be honest, I don't want to." Indi smirks and folds her arms. "So it looks like operation Catch Fall is our only option! Who's with me?" 

"Oh, you have no idea! It's the absolute WORST! North Wind isn't getting out of chore duty of several thousand years because he nearly killed Santa Claus a few Christmas' ago!" Snow Miser shudders at the thought of being forced to do that sort of stuff over creating his beautiful snow.

"Oh yeah, he definitely felt Mother's wrath worse than that too. She kept coming up with new things to throw at him as punishment as she went along. Something she does when she herself is bored and is trying to teach the problem child a lesson. We know that all too well! Oof, growing up with her and constantly fighting the way we did, we were always in trouble." Heat shakes his head and stomps his foot. "Anyways, there's no way I'm letting her or anyone ruin my chances at that award! The only thing we can do is stop her. I don't want to see her get punished by Mother either, not after just returning."

"Agreed!" Snow Miser nods at them both.

Heat, Snow and Indi all put their hands in, shaking upon the new found team up. They were going to solve this mystery of Inari the missing Harvest Maiden.


	12. Dinner Invitation

As the three agree on working together to find and get Inari a flash of lightning sparks close by the group. The three jump in surprise as they look to find Mother Nature standing there. 

"Hello, Children." Mother Nature smiles sweetly as she walks closer to the three.

"M-mother! What brings you here..?" Snow Miser looks nervously between her and the other two. It wasn't often that she showed up unless they were fighting. 

"I just came to check on the progress of the Ice Palace you're making for the ceremony. I must say, it's looking fantastic so far! Also, that's not Heat Miser's handy work is it...?" She motions toward the stone blocks Heat was helping with to stabilize the structure. 

"W-Well, y-yes it is. Someone keeps trying to melt the castle down on Snow, so we decided to give it a structure under the ice to help support it. J-just incase it happens while the ceremony is going on! That way no one will have to worry about it just melting on them." Heat tries to explain. 

"So you're telling me that the both of you willingly worked together on this project?" Mother Nature questions with a gasp of shock in her voice. 

"Y-yes, Mother, Dear.." They both replied. 

"Boys, I couldn't be more proud of you both right now. You have no idea how happy it makes me to hear and see that you two are working together! The structure and palace are very impressive so far." Mother nature smiles warmly and nods. Her attention is soon turned to Indi whom she raises an eyebrow at. "Now then, who might this young lady be..? I don't believe we've met.

"Th-this is...Azura. She's my girlfriend and a river elemental! She's my date for the ceremony. I wanted to introduce her to everyone there as a surprise! Heheh, but it looks like you surprised us!" Snow Miser grins nervously as he glances at Indi. Hearing him call her his girlfriend, Indi's face turns a deep red from her blush. 

"Really? Well that's strange. I wonder why we haven't met before this then! I thought I'd met every elemental. Is she newer by some chance?" Mother Nature gave a curious look. She wasn't usually so careless as to not notice a new elemental in the world. 

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mother Nature!" Indi gives a curtsy/bow. "I am fairly new. I haven't actually met too many other elementals until recently. Snowy being one of the first. He really charmed me with how he dusted the trees around one of my rivers with snow! It's such a breath taking sight.." She giggles and hugs onto his arm gently. 

"Fascinating..! Well, Snowy, if you and this girl are so close, I simply must get to know her more! Especially if you're intending to bring her to the ceremony. I have so many questions! I haven't seen either of my sons this interested in anyone other than themselves or their work in decades. I know, let's have dinner tonight! We can all meet up and get to know each other more then. It'll be perfect!" Mother Nature smiles. 

"B-but, Mother, we uh, need her here! Eheh, We've still so much work to do on the palace before the ceremony in a few nights! We really need her help here." Snow pleads, panicking inside over his mothers deep interest. If they screwed any of this up and she found out, they would be toast! Especially for lying to her like that. He could feel his ice turning into a watery sweat. 

"Y-yeah, whoever is trying to melt it can have their fire put out by her water powers! So we need her here. The three of us really want to continue to work together as team! You can't break up a team.." Heat tries to chime in and help. 

"Alright, I'll invite all of you to dinner then! I won't take no for an answer. As for your palace, I'll have some of my helpers keep an eye on it and inform me if anyone dares to mess with it on my watch." Mother Nature smirks a little, there was something very fishy going on here. Her boys never behaved this well with one another. Nor did they agree, not even in trying to win an award. This Indi was very interesting indeed if she could get them to do that. "Anyways, I'll leave you boys to your work! See you at 6pm sharp, so be ready!"

"Y-yes, Mother, Dear..!" Both Misers exchange fearful glances to each other as their mother leaves. Their looks shifting over to Indi and swallowing very nervously.

"How are we going to pull this off!?" Heat quickly turns to his brother freaking out.

"I don't know!! Ugh, what was I thinking!? A RIVER elemental!? What if she asks Indi to show off her talents?!" Snow Miser covers his face with his hands in a fit of worry. "What have I done..??"

"Well, as long as you and Heat work together, I'm sure we can pull this off, Snowy! Heat melts ice which makes water! If you both gently use your element it'll keep the water flowing right..? If you gently ice over the water without solidifying it, you can still manage to manipulate it, Snow." Indi smiles nervously at her suggestion. 

"Th...that might actually work..!" Snow Miser glances at Heat Miser, growing a smile back onto his face. "Alright, we'll have to practice it for sure, but let's give it a go! We have until dinner to get this right."

"Let's do this..! Heh.." Heat Miser smiles back at his brother. Something felt right about all of this. This is something he wanted from his brother for so long! Sure he got angered quickly at his antics but, deep down he always wanted to have this kind of fun mischief making team work with his brother. Indi seemed to some how make that possible. Though he wouldn't admit it out loud, she was growing on him. He really started to consider her one of them.

On and off through the rest of the afternoon, the two brother tried their best to get their illusion to work with combining their powers. There were plenty of times a lot of frustration had ensued between the two. Fireballs and snowbolts flying through the air to help ease their tensions at one another. Indi sat on the sidelines watching the whole show in mild amusement as they trash talked one another and just went about their usual ways. When things seemed to go on for too long however, she would step in to make peace between the two. Eventually the two were able to fully focus and work together through their trial and error. It was just beginning to turn 5:30PM when they fully got it down pat! 

"Haha, WE DID IT!" Snow Miser cheers giving a little jump of excitement as he hugs his brother and smiles. "I can't believe we've actually done it! We some how managed to get our powers to work together!"

"Yeah and it's all thanks to you, Indi! Thanks for helping us stay on track with it. Even though it was incredibly frustrating at times and I wanted to melt a few cubes off of my brothers head." Heat Miser jokingly smirks at Snow as he hugs him back. 

"Haha, same, I felt like putting out a few of those flames on yours too!" Snowy smirks back at him, folding his arms a little. "Anyways, we should get ready, mother will be expecting us soon! See you later, Hot Head." Waving his brother off, he picks up Indi and teleports them to his house, heading in with her. "I'm going to go get ready for the dinner. I have no idea what to help you find to wear...and I don't think that I could help.." Snow blushes, rubbing the back of his head. "I'll send my minions in to help you out though! They may be able to think up something for you. Sorry I'm not much help.."

"Oh, don't worry about it, Snowy! Your minions help will be just fine." Indi smiles warmly at him, waving her hand. She leans over and kisses his cheek before heading into a room with the minions to try and find something. While there were no female clothes, there were a lot of older clothes that Snow Miser had used at various times. Grabbing out a few pieces, she explains to the minions what she's looking for and they get onto working their magic. It takes them almost 25 minutes to get it finished but when they do it's well worth the wait. Once she's fully dressed she steps on out and does a little spin for Snow Miser. "Well, what do you think..?"

Snow Misers eyes widen as he looks her over, he recognized the outfits she'd used to piece it together. "You look sparkling gorgeous, my snowflake.." He steps closer to her and takes her hands into his. "I can hardly believe you used those old things to make this.. beautiful new piece! You are just amazing." He pulls her close protectively as they step outside. "...Are you...ready to pull this off? I'm admittedly...very nervous. I could almost start shaking right now! I just want everything to work out. I want Mother to like you. I-I'm scared of something bad happening to you if she finds out...or us. I really don't want to lose someone else I care about so deeply. I think it would turn my already cold heart frozen-rock solid if I lost you.." He blushes a little as he rubs the back of his head nervously. 

"Shhh, everything is going to be fine, Snow. If you act nervous you'll give us all away." Indi smiles warmly up at him. Tightly she hugs onto him and gently nuzzles his chest to reassure him. "I'm not going anywhere. I wouldn't want to lose another person I care about either.. But, I believe in us! I believe we can do this. We make a great team..." Every word coming out of Snow Misers mouth was making her heart just melt. He was so caring and concerned.. and still so shy. Leaning up she gives him a quick kiss on the lips. He was adorable! She tries her best to reassure him. "All three of us make a great team too..!" Indi re-states as Heat Miser joins them. "Alright you two, let's do this, together!" She nods, hanging onto both of their arms.

Snow Miser can't help but blush as she kisses him. A happy little sigh leaving his lips as he nuzzles the top of her head. When Heat Miser gets there he looks up at him and nods. "Let's Go! I'm as ready as I'll ever be." With that the trio take off for Mother Natures dinner party.


	13. Mothers Manor

In a flurry the three arrive at Mother Nature's door and look around a little more confused. Normally they end up at her cottage but this was different. This was one of the manors. Snow Miser glances over at Heat Miser who looks back at him with more concern, his eyebrow raising in curiosity and worry. This wasn't a typical place for their mother to bring anyone. The manor was normally reserved for big occasions! While the boys panicked, Indi was happily looking around at the building. The structure was beautiful and over flowing with cottage charm, yet there was a slight castle vibe to it. 

"Come in you three! We're in the dining hall waiting." Mother Nature's voice sounded from the clouds.

Indi jumps a little in surprise by hearing her voice being projected from the clouds. Snow Miser and Heat Miser even give a light startled jump having still been on edge about this. Why did it feel like a trap..? 

"Does she always do that when guests arrive?" Indi blinks looking up at Snow Miser and then over to Heat Miser. 

"Unfortunately, Yes. It always makes us jump when she does that." Snow Miser notes as he opens the door to allow Indi to step in first. 

"I think she enjoys watching people jump out of their skin when she does it. Gives her a little laugh for the day.." Heat Miser grumbles, following Indi and Snow into the manor. 

As they enter into the entry the three of them make their way down toward the dining hall. Snow Miser is looking around with Heat Miser and his expression stats to falter a little from a happy one to a little more saddened. There were a lot of memories in this manor, almost too many. Indi on the other hand has her eyes widening at everything. There was just so much to take in. The beautiful structure of the home with it's stone and cottage look, made everything feel really cozy and homey. 

Indi could tell that this used to be where Heat and Snow used to come to a lot. There were walls that were charred and some that had been iced over. She runs her hand gently over one of the walls as she stops to look at a room in particular. The brothers had been caught up in a conversation with each other so they hadn't noticed the girl wander off. 

Curiously she stepped into the room and looked around at all of the details. The warm wooden walls, the cobblestone fireplace, the Christmas Tree decked with multi-colored glass ornaments, white bulbs, a comfortable looking red chair, a big window with a window seat, a generous sized rug...the whole room felt so magical to look at. She could almost clearly see several individuals in her mind, playing and having fun in here. 

There were candles on the mantle and a bureau close by with photos. Gently picking up one of the photos, Indi smiles at the Nature family. They all looked so happy there! Setting it down she picks up the next one, it was of Inari, The Misers and North when they were kids. Running her thumb over it she gives a puzzling look at the image. Wait, those were the ones she'd just seen in her mind...wasn't it? A door creeks open toward her left near the fireplace. Raising her head to look, she sets down the photo and makes her way in.

Making her way through the door, it leads to a ball room and banquet hall. Indi's eyes widen as she audibly gasps. It was breath taking! Large windows everywhere, a beautiful balcony and staircase, marble tiling.. It was like in some grand movie. Walking through she glances to her reflection on the wall only to find Inari there waving. 

"AH!!" Indi cries out in shock for a moment and jumps back, raising an eyebrow at the reflection. "Inari..? Is ..is that your name? Why do you keep showing up to me..? Why aren't you appearing to Snow and Heat Miser?? Are you angry with them? They miss you...and feel a lot of guilt about what happened you know.." She tries to talk with the girl.

"Oh, sorry! I keep scaring you. Can't help it though since I don't have any tangibility, yet.." Inari giggles and nods. "Yes, my name is Inari." Listening to her other questions she sighs and glances to the side. "I'm not angry with them. I'm always around them in fact! They just can't see me, yet, which is admittedly frustrating!" The reflection folds her arms and rolls her eyes. "I mean, I'm right in front of them! However, you on the other hand can see me and feel me. With your help, Indi, I'll be able to come back!" Inari's smile widens as she motions at Indi. 

"I don't understand. How can I help you come back...? I'm just a ..." Indi shifts her glance from Inari to the floor as she rubs her arm. "...fraud. I'm a girl among magic folk..."

"Oh, pfft, you are not! You are so much more than you realize. Even so, a human able to see any of us sprites, is so powerful! There are so many sprites who wish that a single human could see them. Their fairy tales are either untold or undertold! It's because of humans that some of us continue to have our power and our strength. Belief and stories are very powerful abilities that humans possess! We can still exist without them, but, with them, more humans can see us. Some humans don't need the stories to see us but, others do, for that little magical nudge." Inari explains as she walks over to one of the beams and leans against it in the reflection.

"...I see.... I guess that makes sense." Indi smiles warmly at the girl. "So how can I help you then..?"

"I need you to remember me and the stories you've heard! Remember seeing me when we were younger! I need you to feel me and see through my eyes, see my story..." Inari points out at the ball room. "Close your eyes. This place is crawling with magic!! Feel the energy around you shifting. Feel the excitement, the sounds of a party, sprites dancing, voices talking, music playing, the smell of fresh cookies, pies, a roasted turkey...the lights, the ball gowns.." 

Indi does as she's instructed, closing her eyes tightly as she feels the energy from the rooms past. Images starting to flood into her mind and soon in front of her face as she looks around the room. She lets out a loud gasp as she sees the whole party unfolding in front of her eyes. Mother Nature standing there with Father Time and Father Winter watching over the party. Heat, Snow, Inari and North go rushing by with a plate of snacks and rush into the room with the fireplace. 

"Let's get away from this stupid party. All they want to do is talk about them. It'd be more interesting if they'd talk about me!" North Wind calls back at his brothers.

"It's so boring..! I'd rather stand around watching paint dry.." Heat Miser notes, following him in. 

"C'mon Inari..! We don't want to miss out on the snacks!" Snow leads the girl in behind him, holding her hand tightly so she won't get lost in the crowd. 

Indi steps back into the room to try and watch the rest of it unfold. It was so curious and fascinating! Though part of her still wanted to continue to watch the party, she was interested in the young versions of the sprites. They all seemed so cute and wholesome back then! Also it could help her out with Inari. So quietly she watched..


	14. Memory Lane

When the kids ran into the room they placed the snacks on a small round coffee table. Each one quickly grabbing up their favorites off of the plate. 

Heat Miser pours everyone a cup of hot chocolate to go with the treats as they take a seat. Heat decides to sit closer to the fire place while North takes to leaning against the bureau. Snow chooses the spot closest to the window and Inari picks the chair. The group just enjoying their spoils as they relax. Snow Miser making his hot chocolate more lukewarm. 

"Can you believe it's Christmas Eve already?" Heat Miser asks as he looks at the tree and gifts. " I really hope Santa will bring us something neat this year! I asked him for a pet lizard." He smiles.

"I'm really hoping for the gifts I asked for too! I've been an extra good boy, helping Mama out with whatever she needs. Mainly I want a really beautiful big mirror!" North smiles and boasts. 

"I've been really good too! I'm sure we'll all get our gifts this year." Snow Miser smiles and waves a hand. "I asked for an ice cream maker...! I have so much ice it'd be nice to make my own!" He grins and looks to Inari. "What'd you ask for..?"

"A FOX! I wanted a cute fluffy fox to be my pet! I asked for a white one because it reminds me of snow. Which is another thing I wanted for Christmas, Snow!" Inari giggles and sips at her hot chocolate, taking a bite of her cookie. 

"Well I could do that for you!" Snow Miser grins and jumps up. 

"No you can't. You're no where near powerful enough! Leave that up to your, Dad.." Heat Miser quickly shoots down the idea. "I know you want to show off to your girlfriend but come on.."

Snow Misers face turns a deep red as his eyes widen kind of embarrassed at both comments that Heat Miser dropped. North Wind just sips slowly at his Hot Chocolate as he smirks and looks between the unfolding drama. 

"W-what do you mean show off?! It's not showing off if it's something I can do!" Snow huffs and opens up the window. "Ohh, just you watch." His eyes narrow as he holds his hands out at the sky and concentrates, starting to move them around as his power starts it snowing. "Hah! SEE? I did it! I did it!" He grins and jumps back, his hands placed on his hips. 

"HE DID IT!!" Inari jumps off of the chair after setting down her drink and hugs onto him. "You're the best, Snowy! I get a White Christmas!! I wanna make snowmen, snow angels and do a snow ball fight tomorrow! Can we..!?" Gently she tugs at his shirt. 

"Hehe, of course...! I'm sure there'll be plenty of time before the Christmas Feast tomorrow!" Snow Miser grins. 

"Uhm, Snow, Brother dear...? I think you'd better take a second look at the snow fall. It seems like it's getting heavier...and faster..." North Winds eyes widen as he points at the window. 

"What?!" Snow snaps his head around to look and swallows nervously. "O-ops...uh.....uhm...uh-oh.." Snow Miser bites his bottom lip nervously and closes the window. "I'm sure it'll be fine! It's a snow storm after all! These things happen. It'll end...soon enough." He laughs nervously and tries to wave it off. 

"I....I don't know... I'm telling mom!!" Heat Miser gets up and starts to make his way toward the other room. Snow Miser quickly following after him to stop him. The two of them ending up in a bit of a fight right in front of their mother and the others. Thankfully this alerted Mother Nature and Father Winter to the issue. The two quickly trying to take control of the situation with the weather. Still it was too late and the damage had been done. 

"I don't know if Santa Claus will be able to make it through this storm. " Father Winter looks at Mother Nature sadly. "There's going to be many disappointed children unless he finds a miracle to make it through that snowy weather." 

"I'm sure he will...! Santa is a beacon of hope and I'm sure there has to be one out there for him too. Shining just a red and bright as his suit." Mother Nature sighs and looks at the kids who were now sad. "I'm sure Santa will find some way to deliver gifts. Even if I'm not sure about two of you getting any for your behavior.." She gives a slight look of disappointment. 

Snow Miser gets up with tears in his eyes and looks up at the adults. "I'm going to my room. I'm sorry! I'm sorry I get it, I ruined Christmas...!! All I wanted to do was make Inari's Christmas wish come true...but instead.. I ruined everyone's Christmas..! It's all my fault!" Sobbing he runs off.

Later that night there's a knock at Snow Miser's bedroom door. Snow turns to look at the door before turning over in his bed. "...I don't want to talk right now.." In his hand he plays with a fox he made out of magical-non-melting ice for Inari. He'd been debating for the last few hours of giving it to her but he wasn't sure that she or anyone would want to see him. 

Mother Nature slowly opens the door and walks in and tsks. "That answer won't do, Snowy. I need you to come downstairs with me right now." She speaks gently but firmly to her son. 

Snow Miser sighs and gets up off of his bed and starts following his mother downstairs. He's playing with the fox he made in his hands nervously until he gets to the lounge. His eyes widening as he sees everyone with their gifts and Santa standing there. 

"S-Santa!? Y-you made it?" He asks excitedly as he looks on with a smile at his brothers enjoying their gifts and Inari hugging her fox. He quickly makes his way over to her and smiles. "Y-your fox came!! I'm so happy for you, Inari!" His smile widens as he watches her. "How did you pull it off Santa? I'm ...sorry for causing you so much trouble... I didn't mean to.." 

"Ho Ho Ho, it's alright, Snowy. Accidents happen, but, let's not let this accident happen again, Hm?" He winks. "I had help from one of my newest reindeer, Rudolph! He used his shiny nose to help me make it through the storm." Santa laughs and pats his head, giving him his gift. "Since you said you were sorry and it was an accident, here's your gift. Now I must be off! I have other children to visit tonight! Merry Christmas!!" With that he makes his way back to his sleigh and takes off into the night. 

"Oh yeah! Inari...! I ... I made this for you..." Snow Miser makes his way over to her and hands her the sculpture. "Merry Christmas...! I ... made it in case you didn't get your fox.."

The girls eyes light up as she takes it and hugs it. " I love it, Snowy!! Thank you!" The little girl leans up and kisses his cheek. "You're the sweetest. I'll cherish it forever, won't I, Flurry?" Inari laughs and boops noses with her fox friend. 

Coming out of the memories Indi finds herself kneeling by the tree and staring at a small arctic fox ornament. A voice calling out to her from behind. 

"Indi..? Sugar Plum, are you okay...?" Snow Miser stands in the door way questioning a little quietly as he slowly walks over to her. His eyes filled with curiosity, concern, his stomach and heart turning with many emotions. What had he just seen the end of..? "What....was that..?"

"Inari...was...showing me something. I'm fine..!" Indi gets up and walks over to him, hugging him tightly. "Some memories. You could see them too..?" 

"Y-yeah..we'll talk about it later. Let's ...let's get going! We don't want to worry Mother or keep her waiting. She can become impatient rather quickly." Snow Miser wraps his arm protectively around her as he tries to laugh it off a bit. His eyes glancing back at the room once more before the two of them leave.


End file.
